Mariano Andujar, goalkeeper of the Argentine football team Estudiantes from La Plata, expressed his joy after winning the 2009 Copa Libertadores. “Winning at this stage is such a unique thrill.”
Having beaten the Brazilian club Cruzeiro 2-1, this is the Estudiantes’ sixth huge international victory. Their last finals appearance in the Copa Libertadores was 38 years ago.
The final of the Copa Libertadores contains two legs; one match at home and one away. The first leg, played at the Estudiantes’ home stadium in La Plata on 8th July, resulted in a scoreless tie.
A week later, the teams faced each other again at the Estadio Mineirão in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. The Cruzeiros, favoured to win with nine victories throughout the tournament, were ready to impress their fans at home with a victory against the Estudiantes, but goals by Fernández and Boselli on the Argentine side proved them wrong.
Andujar reported to Olé what he felt just seconds after the team was made champion of the Americas: “I still do not think we realise what happened here. To win in this historic stadium, to hold this Cup.” He looked to the sky and reached out to his family. “My wife, my daughters, my father, who must be crying over there…”
Andujar, starting goalkeeper for the Argentine national team, expressed his attachment to the Estudiantes after playing with them throughout the tournament.
“I leave very happy. But it will be a bye, nothing more. I will go back, obviously … I’ve learned to like this club, to identify with its colors. This group has entered into history.”