‘Weird’ Libertadores final in Madrid no handicap for River, says Boca’s Tevez

The second leg was moved to Real Madrid’s Santiago Bernabeu after the original fixture at River’s El Monumental stadium was postponed last month, following an attack by their fans on Boca’s team bus.

South America’s football federation, CONMEBOL, ruled River should lose the chance to play at home, with the game moved abroad amid fears over further fan violence.

“It is a weird final,” Tevez said Thursday after Boca had trained for the first time at Las Rozas, the base of the Spanish national team.

“To play a match between Boca and River in Madrid, it’s weird. But as a player, it is important to stay focused on the match.”

Argentina’s two greatest football rivals competing for South America’s most prestigious club prize out of the country, and in Spain, has proven controversial, with both clubs expressing their disapproval.

Boca believe the chaos caused by River’s fans means they should be awarded the trophy while River have protested against the loss of home advantage enjoyed by their opponents in the first leg, which finished 2-2.

Both sets of supporters have been allowed an equal allocation of 25,000 tickets for the match in Madrid, despite away fans being banned at Boca’s Bombonera ground, as they would have been at El Monumental.

Asked if River’s chances had been damaged, Tevez said: “I don’t think so. River have a lot more pressure playing at home and now it is 50-50. To play at home, sometimes it goes against you in a Libertadores final.”

Security remains high on the agenda after River’s fans smashed the windows of Boca’s bus and left some of their players injured.

One of Boca’s most radical supporters was sent back to Argentina on Thursday after he had arrived at Madrid’s Barajas Airport.

“He is one of the most important and dangerous Boca ultras,” a spokesman for the Spanish police told AFP.

Tevez also called for calm around the match.

“I think people are smart,” he said. “They know they can’t mess around here so the truth is everything should happen peacefully, as it should do.

“I think it’s important for everyone involved to know that while it is a final, of course, it is a football match. We feel good because we’re here and we thank the Spanish people for welcoming us.”

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