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Argentine Roundup Independiente on top as River Plate slips upPosted: Monday September 09, 2002 5:55 AMBUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) -- Independiente was a point clear atop Argentina's soccer league Sunday, after champions River Plate dropped two more points during a 0-0 tie with newly promoted Arsenal de Sarandi. Independiente went top Friday after a 7-1 demolition of Colon that gave the side 17 points from seven games. Rosario Central is second with 16 points after tying 1-1 Saturday with Velez Sarsfield. River Plate, Boca Juniors and Newell's Old Boys were tied in joint third with 14 points after River's tie, Boca's 2-0 win over Gimnasia and Newell's 2-1 victory at Nueva Chicago on Sunday. Colon's humbling by Independiente led to the resignation of its coach Jorge Fossati, despite the team's comfortable mid-table position. Another coaching casualty was Talleres' Enzo Trossero, who resigned after his side's 3-0 home loss to Chacarita on Sunday. The Cordoba side is currently 14th with just six points from seven games. For Independiente fans, Friday's demolition of Colon was confirmation that the Buenos Aires club, once the most feared outfit on the continent, but more recently a cash-strapped mediocrity, has its best chance in years of winning the title. Fluid, focused and ruthless upfront, Independiente broke down Colon's ragged defense three times in the first half. The first goal came in the 14th minute when Javier Delgado headed the ball into his own net. Daniel Montenegro made it two with a long-range shot five minutes later. In the 44th minute Andres Silvera scored the third on a Montenegro pass. The home side refused to slacken the pace in the second half, with Leonel Rios making the score 4-0 with a sweet chip from the edge of the box in the 50th minute. Lucas Pusineri added the fifth with a 67th minute tap-in, while the sixth came after Gabriel Rivas ran through on goal and slid his shot home in between Colon keeper Joaquin Irigoytia's legs. Martin Romagnoli's header pulled one back for Colon before the superb Silvera grabbed his second to round up the victory. After the game, Independiente's coach Americo Gallego expressed his pride in his players. "Independiente demonstrated very attractive soccer and showed absolutely no mercy in front of goal. We finished off this game like a team that is set on being champion," he told reporters. While Independiente shined, River Plate disappointed again -- tying 0-0 with Arsenal after last Sunday's surprise 2-1 home defeat to Huracan. River was uncharacteristically defensive in the first half and might have been two down by the break after Silvio Gonzalez headed over and Patricio Gonzalez's shot was saved by River 'keeper Jose Maria Buljubasich just. Meanwhile Boca was finding life easier against Gimnasia, thanks to a double-strike by the on-form Hector Bracamonte. The lanky striker netted his first in the 42nd and 55th minutes. In the weekend's other big game, Velez Sarsfield held last week's leaders Rosario Central 1-1 on Saturday. Central went ahead after 16 minutes -- Paulo Ferrari netting a penalty the referee awarded for a foul by Velez 'keeper Gaston Sessa on Cristian Pino. But the home side leveled in the 50th minute when Lucas Valdemarin flicked a header home from 8-meters (27-feet) out.
The weekend's other results were as follows: Estudiantes 2-1 Huracan, Banfield 2-2 Olimpo, San Lorenzo 1-1 Lanus.
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