A weekly round up of the joys and despairs of the Argentine Primera Division, from the one football writer Maradona didn’t invite to “Chuparla”. This Week: Banfield champions, Lanús in La Copa, Racing back to normal and an Abu Dhabi survival guide for the Esudiantes hinchada.

Argentina’s rugby side, the Pumas, concluded their tour of Great Britain at the end of November on an upbeat note defeating Scotland 9-6 in Edinburgh with virtually the last kick of the game, having lost the first two tests to England and Wales. Coach, Santiago Phelan, took a touring party combining experienced veterans of the 2007 World Cup led by captain, Juan Martín Fernández Lobbe, and nine home-based players.

A weekly round up of the joys and despairs of the Argentine Primera Division, from the one football writer Maradona didn’t invite to “Chuparla”. This Week: Banfield so close, San Lorenzo self-destruct and why I’m not talking to my gallina housemate.

A weekly round up of the joys and despairs of the Argentine Primera Division, from the one football writer Maradona didn’t invite to “Chuparla”. This Week: Topsy-Turvy at the top, Argentina at the World Cup and two reasons why being a Racing fan should come with a health warning.

A weekly round up of the joys and despairs of the Argentine Primera Division, from the one football writer Maradona didn’t invite to “Chuparla”. This Week: Changes at the top, humiliation for Boca and why Racing are the Argentine Newcastle United.

A weekly round up of the joys and despairs of the Argentine Primera Division, from the one football writer Maradona didn’t invite to “Chuparla”. This week: firearms, violence and football in Rosario, despair for Racing and horseback ice-hockey.

A weekly round up of the joys and despairs of the Argentine Primera Division, from the one football writer Maradona didn’t invite to “Chuparla”.

On 9th October, Pablo Martín Gómez was stopped at traffic lights on the way to his girlfriend’s house in Rosario. A motorcycle pulled up alongside his vehicle and, without saying a word, one of the riders shot the driver four times. Before falling into a coma from which he would never wake up, Gomez managed to call a friend saying: “They found me. They shot me.” Though the incident occurred away from any stadium, investigators suspect that Gomez is yet another victim of the unrelenting violence that plagues Argentine football. In a country where the beautiful game is sacrosanct, the action on the pitch is all-too-frequently overshadowed by the brutal antics of the barra bravas.

The music is cut and the lights go up, focusing on the octagonal steel cage in the middle of the club. Inside two fighters circle each other warily, under the watchful eye of the referee. The crowd waits in silence, anticipating the imminent explosion of action and combat. Finally one of the fighters makes a move, lunging towards his opponent in an attempt to take him to the floor and gain the upper hand.

A weekly round up of the joys and despairs of the Argentine Primera Division, from the one football writer Maradona didn’t invite to “Chuparla”.