When it's their hand, the whistle blows. When it's ours, he doesn't even look.
En la noche del martes en La Bombonera, Boca Juniors vio cómo una decisión arbitral en el último suspiro del partido les arrebató la victoria que necesitaban para afianzar su camino en la Copa Libertadores. El árbitro Valenzuela revisó una posible mano de Romero en el área, miró el monitor y se alejó en silencio, dejando el marcador en 1-1 y a un club entero preguntándose si la justicia deportiva es tan ciega como debería serlo. Lo que pudo ser una noche de certezas se convirtió en una de incertidumbre, y Boca deberá ahora ganar su último partido de grupo sin margen para el error ni para la duda.
- En el tiempo de descuento, con el partido igualado, Romero detuvo con el brazo un disparo de Merentiel que habría dado la victoria a Boca, pero el árbitro ignoró la revisión del VAR y no señaló penalti.
- La contradicción fue inmediata y dolorosa: minutos antes, el mismo sistema había anulado un gol de Merentiel por una mano en la jugada previa, aplicando el reglamento con rigor quirúrgico solo en una dirección.
- Boca dominó el partido durante largos tramos, se adelantó en el marcador y contó con superioridad numérica tras la expulsión de Gerson, pero la pasividad táctica en la segunda parte permitió el empate de Fagner.
- El capitán Paredes no ocultó su indignación en zona mixta, señalando la inconsistencia arbitral como una herida que va más allá del resultado: la misma falta, dos varas de medir.
- Boca llega a su último partido del grupo contra Universidad Católica obligado a ganar, con la clasificación a los octavos de final pendiendo de un hilo que ellos mismos no pudieron controlar.
El árbitro Valenzuela fue llamado al monitor en el último instante del partido. Miró las imágenes. Se alejó. No señaló nada. El empate 1-1 entre Boca Juniors y Cruzeiro quedó confirmado en La Bombonera, y con él, una pregunta que no encontrará respuesta fácil: ¿cómo puede el mismo sistema arbitral anular un gol por mano y luego ignorar una mano idéntica del equipo rival en el área?
Boca había llegado a este partido necesitando los tres puntos para controlar su destino en la Copa Libertadores. Durante la primera mitad, el equipo xeneize fue superior: Braida, Merentiel y Aranda presionaron con intensidad, y a los quince minutos Paredes asistió al segundo palo para que Merentiel abriera el marcador. Todo parecía encaminado.
Pero la segunda mitad trajo consigo una Boca diferente, más conservadora, que cedió el control del partido. Cruzeiro aprovechó el repliegue y Fagner igualó en el minuto sesenta. La expulsión de Gerson por una entrada sobre Paredes devolvió la ventaja numérica a los locales, que volvieron a presionar en busca del gol definitivo.
Lo que siguió fue una secuencia que resumió toda la noche: el VAR anuló un gol de Merentiel por una mano en la jugada previa con rapidez y precisión. Segundos después, Romero detuvo con el brazo otro disparo del mismo jugador. El VAR volvió a intervenir. Valenzuela volvió al monitor. Y esta vez, el silbato final fue su única respuesta.
Paredes habló con claridad después del partido. La inconsistencia era evidente, dijo. Cuando la mano de Boca toca el balón, hay penalti. Cuando la mano de Cruzeiro detiene un gol, no hay nada. Boca deberá ahora ganar contra Universidad Católica en la última jornada para seguir en la competición, cargando con el peso de una noche que pudo ser distinta.
The final whistle blew at La Bombonera on a night that will linger in the memory of every Boca supporter—not for what happened, but for what the referee refused to see. In the last moment of the match, with the score locked at one apiece, Romero of Cruzeiro extended his left arm and stopped a shot from Merentiel that would have won the game. The VAR system flagged it. The referee, Valenzuela, was called to the monitor. He looked. He walked away. He blew the whistle. No penalty. The draw stood, and Boca's path to the Copa Libertadores knockout stage suddenly narrowed to a single, unforgiving line.
Boca had come to this match needing a victory. The group stage was tightening, and three points were the only currency that mattered if they wanted to control their own fate in South America's premier club competition. Instead, they left with one point and a question that would echo through the city: how could the same referee system that had disallowed a Boca goal for a handball earlier in the evening refuse to acknowledge an identical offense when it came from the opposing team?
The match itself had belonged to Boca for long stretches. In the opening minutes, their goalkeeper Otavio was barely tested as the home side pressed forward with purpose. Malcom Braida, Merentiel, and Aranda all found themselves turned away by Cruzeiro's defense, but the pressure was unmistakable. Boca wanted this badly. Fifteen minutes in, Leo Paredes, wearing the captain's armband, delivered a cross to the far post that found Merentiel in space. The striker needed only to place his foot on the ball, and it rolled into the net. One-nil. For a moment, everything felt possible.
But Boca made a choice in the second half that would haunt them. With a goal in hand, they retreated. The aggression that had defined the first forty-five minutes gave way to caution. They seemed to believe one goal would be enough. Cruzeiro, sensing the shift, grew bolder. At the hour mark, Fagner equalized. The match was level, and the momentum had swung entirely. Then came a moment of fortune: Gerson, Cruzeiro's midfielder and their best player to that point, caught Paredes with a challenge that warranted a red card. The VAR review was swift. Gerson was sent off. Boca had a numerical advantage and a chance to seize control again.
What followed was chaos compressed into the final minutes. The VAR system disallowed a Merentiel goal for a handball by Delgado in the buildup—a decision made with precision and speed. But when Romero's arm stopped Merentiel's shot in the dying seconds, Valenzuela's response was different. He did not see it. Or he chose not to. Paredes, standing in the mixed zone afterward, could not hide his frustration. The inconsistency was glaring, he said. When a hand touches the ball and results in a goal, the referee points to the spot. When Boca's hand does the same, the whistle blows. But when Cruzeiro's hand stops a goal, suddenly the referee has nothing to say.
Boca now faces Universidad Católica in their final group match with no margin for error. A draw will likely not be enough. A loss will end their continental campaign. The controversial draw with Cruzeiro has transformed what should have been a straightforward path into a desperate scramble, and the weight of that injustice—real or perceived—will travel with them into that final fixture.
Citas Notables
It's strange that for one side yes, but for the other no. When the hand touches the ball and it's a goal, he points to the spot. With us, he doesn't even look.— Leo Paredes, Boca captain, in post-match comments
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
Why does this moment matter so much? It's one penalty in one match.
Because it's not about one penalty. It's about Boca's entire season now hinging on a single result. They had control of their own destiny. One win and they advance. Now they need to win their last match, and if they don't, they're out. The referee took that control away.
But wasn't the earlier disallowed goal also a handball? Why is that different?
It is a handball. That's the point. Both were handballs. Both should have been called the same way. What Paredes is saying is that the standard changed depending on which team benefited. That's what makes it feel like an injustice—not just the missed call, but the pattern.
Did Boca actually play well enough to deserve to win?
They dominated the first half. They created chances. They scored. But then they stopped playing. They got comfortable with one goal and Cruzeiro punished them. So yes, they made mistakes. But they also had a chance to win it at the end, and that was taken from them.
What happens now?
They play Universidad Católica knowing that anything less than a win ends their tournament. There's no cushion, no second chances. That's what the draw cost them—not just two points, but peace of mind.