On Wednesday night, at the Fiscal Stadium in Talca, Ñublense secured a hard-fought 1-1 draw once morest Rangers in the first leg of the quarter-finals of the southern regional phase of the Chilean Cup.

The Talca team opened the scoring at 24′ through their center forward Gustavo Gotti, but the Chillán team reacted in the second half and tied the score at 52′ through midfielder Matías Plaza.

Salas’s balance sheet

In a press conference, Ñublense coach Mario Salas said that “in the first half we created some chances, we were incisive and then Rangers, with long passes, worried us and scored the goal. In the second half, we controlled the ball more and managed to tie the game. The result is fair. The tie is still open for the second match and we hope to close it at home with our fans.”

Salas added that “it was difficult for us to adapt to this pitch, which was not in good condition, even though it was designed to promote to First Division.”

Booster

Salas explained that the departure of Rodrigo Cisternas, Emanuel Herrera and Benjamín Araneda was on their own initiative and confirmed that “a player from midfield or upwards” will arrive.

Ñublense will seek qualification once morest Rangers on Sunday at 3 p.m. at the Nelson Oyarzún stadium in Chillán.