By Brian Homewood
RIO DE JANEIRO, Feb 10 - LDU squeezed into the
second round of the Libertadores Cup on the away goals rule
despite having three players sent off in a 4-1 defeat by Penarol
in Montevideo on Thursday.
The Ecuadoreans will now face Brazilian champions Santos,
Uruguayan champions Danubio and Bolivar of Bolivia in Group Two
thanks to their 3-0 win over Penarol in last week's first leg in
Quito.
Alex Aguinaga, the first player to be sent off, was furious
with Brazilian referee Paulo Cesar Oliveira.
"The refereeing was not correct," said Aguinaga. "It was a
disgrace. This type of refereeing cannot be allowed in the
Libertadores."
Penarol's failure to reach the lucrative group stage marked
another chapter in the decline of the once-great Uruguayan team,
who have won South America's top club tournament five times.
LDU appeared set for a comfortable evening at the Centenario
stadium when midfielder Edison Mendez put them ahead in the 21st
minute with a long-range drive.
They seemed in little danger when Penarol equalised three
minutes later after midfielder Alfonso Obregon put through his
own net, the ball bouncing in off his knee.
AGUINAGA OFF
But the game changed when former Ecuador captain Aguinaga
was sent off in the 36th minute for retaliation against Sergio
Leal, who clattered into him from behind, trod on his leg and
escaped unpunished.
The drama increased when Pablo Gaglianone headed Penarol in
front in first-half injury time.
Penarol launched an aerial bombardment in the second half
and another headed goal by Haitian defender Jean-Jacques Pierre
made it 3-1 in the 71st minute.
Obregon completed a miserable night when he was sent off for
a second bookable offence in the 86th minute.
Marcelo Tejera notched Penarol's fourth goal from a rebound
in injury time before LDU had Luis Gonzalez dismissed in the
dying seconds.
Colombian champions Atletico Junior became the last team to
reach the second round when they beat Bolivia's Oriente
Petrolero 3-1 in Santa Cruz for a 5-2 aggregate win.
Emerson Acuna and Juan Fernando Leal put Atletico in control
with two goals in eight first-half minutes before Oscar Espinola
pulled one back for Oriente.
Atletico went further ahead when Omar Perez scored on the
break in the 67th minute. They now face River Plate (Argentina),
Nacional (Uruguay) and Olmedo (Ecuador) in Group Five.