Flamengo win Copa Libertadores title as last-gasp Gabriel Barbosa double sees off River Plate

Malik Ouzia @MalikOuzia_23 November 2019

A dramatic late double from Gabriel Barbosa saw Flamengo come from a goal down to claim their first Copa Libertadores title since 1981 with victory over River Plate in Lima.

Argentinian side River were looking to defend the title they had won in an infamous final against rivals Boca Juniors twelve months ago, and looked on course to do so, having been in control for much of the game after Rafael Santos Borre’s opener.

But Barbosa, nicknamed ‘Gabigol’ in Brazil, levelled with a tap-in from close range in the 89th minute, and the first final in the competition’s history to be held as a one-off, rather than two-legged affair seemed to be heading for extra-time.

That was until the top scorer in this season’s competition struck again in added time to complete a smash-and-grab raid for the side managed by former Sporting and Benfica boss Jorge Jesus.

Barbosa was then sent off deep into stoppage time for his part in a fracas started by Exequiel Palacios’ petulant kick-out, for which he also saw red.

Flamengo will go on to represent the South American federation at next month’s Club World Cup, where they could be set for a repeat of their famous clash against Liverpool from the 1981 tournament.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in