There is something different about the giant Coca-Cola logos that adorn La Bombonera,Boca’s atmospheric stadium.
The red and white branding, instantly recognised the world over, is not acceptable around these parts because the colours are those of River Plate, which explains why the logo has been changed to black and white.
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Ticker-tape reception: Boca fans hail their team before kick-off, as a cheerleader (below) adds to the colour
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No historical religious divide involved here - instead there is a supposed class distinction, with Boca being the team championed by the working classes.
As ever, the game sold out weeks in advance, with River Plate going into the match as league leaders, four points ahead of their rivals.
Local advice was to get there early, easier said than done with four security cordons to be negotiated.
Barbecues were breaking out all along the route to the ground and we made a pit-stop for some fluid. Alcohol is banned anywhere near the ground on match days, so water, rather than beer, had to be the order of the day.
The last security check involved a body search - an attempt to keep weapons and fireworks out of the volatile mix.
The 58,000-capacity stadium was a riot of colour and noise - the only empty seats being in the ’safety zone’ between the 5,000 visiting fans in the top tier at one end and the effervescent Boca followers everywhere else.
Pre-match, the rival supporters exchanged insulting chants, with the Boca lot behind the goal enjoying the support of sundry drummers and trumpeters.
The reserve squads of both teams tried to keep the fans amused by playing two periods of 30 minutes before the real deal started, but little attention was paid to them.
As you would expect, the noise level reached deafening proportions as kick-off approached and the concrete structure of the stadium was put to the test as the fans bounced up and down.
Boca fans behind the goal unveiled the biggest banner I’ve ever seen - it stretched from the third tier all the way down to the ground some 100 feet below and almost covered the entire end.
Then the home team’s cheerleaders emerged and they attracted more attention than the reserve squads had managed - and their dancing wasn’t too shabby either.
The two dressing rooms are in different parts of the ground and the teams enter the pitch through separate tunnels.
The away dressing room is under the popular home end, so a 25-metre inflatable tunnel was needed to see River Plate to safety outwith missile range of those Boca fans who were lobbing anything and everything over the 30-foot high barbed wire-topped security fence - upon which some of their number were perched!
Health and safety considerations in the almost vertical stands with narrow passageways blocked by seated fans were noticeable only by their absence.
Ten minutes before the start, Boca emerged to an ear-splitting ovation with ticker tape and paper cascading on to the pitch. Predictably, River Plate’s entrance was greeted by jeers and catcalls.
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Claiming the spoils: Battaglia, scorer of the only goal, is embraced by team-mate Riquelme (above), prompting an ecstatic response from the Boca fans (below)
The game itself was a disappointment and never measured up to the unique atmosphere in which it was played. Boca won 1-0, thanks to a goal from midfielder Sebastian Battaglia, whose powerful header from a corner resulted in an explosion of noise and another avalanche of ticker tape. More frantic tidying up required.
Juan Roman Riquelme, known to us from his time at Villarreal, orchestrated most of the home attacks but he lost interest and ran out of steam in the second half, as did his opposite number, Ariel Ortega, who had been at the heart of things for River Plate.
Both were hooked after 75 minutes and the game petered out, despite the frantic efforts of coach Diego Simeone to rally his River Plate team.
Boca were deserved winners. The ball control and passing was sublime at times, but I have to say that the game lacked the intensity and physical edge that Celtic and Rangers manage to serve up on most occasions.
Referee Gustavo Bassi handled the game well, although I’m not sure his emerald green and white top would go down well at Ibrox.
His approach was to play as much advantage as he could and it paid off. There was far less diving, feigning and cynical fouling than I had expected. Only three yellow cards were needed and one of those was for the Boca keeper’s time-wasting.
There was some blatant wrestling in the penalty areas at set-pieces and the odd attempt to persuade the referee to issue a card to an opponent but, by and large, the game itself was tame by comparison with some Old Firm encounters in which I was involved.
Having said that, I don’t recall seeing a riot policeman in Glasgow having to hold his shield over a player’s head to protect him from missiles during the game, which is what happened every time River Plate had a corner at the Boca end.
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