Copa Libertadores wrap: Lanus move top of group

Argentine club Lanus moved to the top of Copa Libertadores Group Two with a 2-0 victory over Emelec on Tuesday.

Mario Regueiro was the match-winner for Lanus, scoring both goals as the visitors completed back-to-back wins against the Ecuadorians in the continental tournament.

Lanus defended strongly and managed to cling to an early lead despite coming under a barrage of pressure from Emelec.

The Argentines silenced the crowd when they took the lead after just five minutes from a well-constructed set move.

With Emelec’s penalty area packed with players, everyone expected Diego Valeri to curl a cross into the box but instead he drilled the ball to Regueiro who peeled off towards the penalty spot and hit his shot into the roof of the net.

Lanus sat back for the rest of the match and that defensive tactic paid off when Reguiro converted a penalty in the 87th minute.

The victory moves Lanus up to the top of their group but that could change when Olimpia and Flamengo face off next week, with the latter just two points behind the group leaders.

Emelec is bottom of the group after their third loss in as many games of the competition.

In Group Three, spectacular goals were the order of the day as Bolivar downed Atletico Junior 2-1 for the second time in just over a week, leaving the Colombian side without a win in this year’s tournament.

The hosts scored twice in the first half and held on despite Luis Carlos Ruiz’s 67th-minute goal for Junior.

In an occasionally scrappy game, Lorgio Alvarez produced a stunning strike that found the top corner to give Bolivar the lead after 31 minutes.

They doubled up six minutes before the break when Jhasmany Campos scored the game’s second stunning goal with an unstoppable 35-yard free kick.

In the second half, Junior, who had been inactive for much of the game, managed to pull a goal back.

Ruiz struck the ball into the net off the underside of the bar, completing a treble of spectacular strikes.

Junior remain bottom of their group with a single point from four games.

Bolivar join Union Espanola on seven points at the top of the group, though the Chileans have one game in hand.