The 1997 Supercopa Libertadores finals were the final matches of the 1997 Supercopa Libertadores, the tenth and final edition of South America's secondary club football competition. The two-legged event was contested between São Paulo of Brazil and River Plate of Argentina. The first leg was played at the Estádio do Morumbi, São Paulo, on 4 December 1997 and the second leg was played on 17 December 1997 at the Estadio Monumental, Buenos Aires. They were both appearing in their second final. São Paulo had previously won the tournament in 1993, while River Plate had lost the final of the 1991 edition.
Each team had to progress through their group stage in first position, and subsequently play a single knockout round, totalizing eight matches. São Paulo won their group against Flamengo, Olimpia and Vélez Sarsfield before beating Colo-Colo, while River Plate defeated Atlético Nacional after finishing ahead of Vasco da Gama, Santos and Racing Club to qualify for the final.
A crowd of 45,413 spectated the first leg at the Estádio do Morumbi, which resulted in a goalless draw. Watched by a crowd of 59,180 at the Estadio Monumental, River Plate took an early lead in the second half when Marcelo Salas scored. Dodô equalised the match minutes later for São Paulo, but the Chilean striker would sign a brace for a 2âÂÂ1 scoreline. No further goals were scored, thus crowning River Plate champions of the last edition of the Supercopa Libertadores.
The Supercopa Libertadores was founded in the late 1980s. It was established to determine who would face the Copa Libertadores' season champion in the Recopa Sudamericana, looking to crown the best team in South America. The competition brought together every past winner of the Copa Libertadores into a single-elimination tournament until 1997, when the format was altered to have a double round-robin precede the two-legged semi-final and final matches. The Supercopa Libertadores was regarded as the second most prestigious South American club competition.
São Paulo first qualified for the Supercopa Libertadores as winners of the 1992 Copa Libertadores. They won their first Copa Libertadores final after beating Argentine team Newell's Old Boys 3âÂÂ2 on penalties, following a 1âÂÂ1 tie over two legs. Their debut tournament saw them beat fellow Brazilian squad Santos, but lose their quarter-final match against Club Olimpia of Paraguay. São Paulo would reach the final of the Supercopa Libertadores a year later, which they won against Flamengo. After a 4âÂÂ4 aggregate draw, the penalty shoot-out at the Estádio do Morumbi went in favour of the host team 5âÂÂ3.
River Plate had first won the Copa Libertadores in 1986, when they beat Colombian team América de Cali on both legs of the final. Therefore, they had played in every season of the Supercopa Libertadores since 1988. During their run in the first edition of the tournament, River Plate defeated Club Olimpia and Grêmio, but fell short in their semi-final match against Racing Club, to whom they suffered a 3âÂÂ2 loss on the aggregate. They would eventually qualify for the 1991 final, which they lost to Cruzeiro. The first leg went in their favour 2âÂÂ0, but their opposition managed a 3âÂÂ0 comeback to take the match.
The competition proper started with the group stage, contested as four double round-robin groups of four teams, with the winner of each group advancing to the knockout stages. The semi-final and final knockout stage ties were decided based on home and away matches.
São Paulo entered the competition in the group stage. They were drawn in Group 2 alongside Flamengo, Olimpia and Vélez Sarsfield. São Paulo lost 3âÂÂ2 their opening match at the Estádio do Maracanã, but proceeded to win their two following home fixtures, with a resounding victory against Vélez Sarsfield and a close 1âÂÂ0 affair against their fellow Brazilian team Flamengo. After the latter failed to secure a 3âÂÂ1 advantage on their fifth matchday, São Paulo were given the chance to qualify if they earned a victory in their final fixture. They would win 4âÂÂ1 against Olimpia, topping their group and reaching the knockout stage.
Their opponent in the semi-finals would be Colo-Colo of Chile, who finished in first position of Group 1. The first leg would go 3âÂÂ1 in favour of São Paulo at the Estádio do Morumbi, courtesy of goals from Fabiano, VÃÂctor Aristizábal and Dodô. Colo-Colo would pull one back through Ivo Basay, who later had a penalty stopped by Rogério Ceni. The second leg at the Estadio Monumental David Arellano would also result in a São Paulo win, after Dodô scored the lone goal of the game in stoppage time.
River Plate also entered the competition in the group stage. The draw determined they would be playing Vasco da Gama, Santos and Racing Club in Group 3. They would earn 12 points over their first four matchdays, following a pair of 3âÂÂ2 home victories against Racing Club and Santos, a 5âÂÂ1 rout against Vasco da Gama, and another 3âÂÂ2 away win against their fellow Argentine side. A triumph at Santos' Vila Belmiro would have sent them into the semi-finals with a game to spare, but they were denied after sustaining a 2âÂÂ1 loss. As a result, the first and second place of Group 3 were to be decided at Vasco da Gama's home ground. At the São Januário, River Plate earned a 2âÂÂ0 victory that qualified them to the next stage.
Their first knockout stage match would be against Atlético Nacional of Colombia, winners of Group 4. The opening leg played at River Plate's Estadio Monumental was won by the home side 2âÂÂ0, after Chilean striker Marcelo Salas scored a brace in the first half. The return leg hosted at the Estadio Atanasio Girardot ended 2âÂÂ1 to Atlético Nacional, but a 3âÂÂ2 aggregate ensured the visitors reached the finals.
The first leg was held at the Estádio do Morumbi, the home ground of São Paulo. The home side attempted to exert pressure from the first whistle, and had their first opportunity just two minutes into the match. Marcelinho ParaÃÂba ran down his flank and crossed for Fabiano, who was unable to shoot on target. River Plate responded swiftly through right-back Hernán DÃÂaz, whose delivery met Enzo Francescoli, although the striker also failed to capitalize. The visitors started to gradually prevail, as they pressed upon their opposition's build-up. Another scoring prospect arose for their side in the tenth minute, when Marcelo Salas, after a cross from Marcelo Gallardo, headed wide while unmarked. São Paulo were rendered unable to muster any attack, product of a lack of coordination and their opposition's reliance on fouls to prevent their efforts. They began to count on sporadic runs by full-backs Zé Carlos and Serginho to dictate their plays. The latter missed the last chance for his team in the opening half, when he shot wide across the goal in the 43rd minute. Moments later, River Plate were given an opportunity to score after Roberto Monserrat recovered possession of the ball. The midfielder sorted it out to Salas, whose cross to Francescoli was intercepted by EdmÃÂlson.
The second half gave way to a São Paulo strategy that involved a more aggressive attacking approach, which ended up being mainly reliant on crosses. Just two minutes into the half, River Plate midfielder Sergio Berti received a straight red card following a disqualifying tackle on Fabiano. This prompted the visitors to renege from attacking, choosing instead to adopt a defensive scheme based on retaining possession and avoiding taking risks. Although a man up, São Paulo remained adamant on sending deliveries into the box, which centre-backs Celso Ayala and Eduardo Berizzo repeatedly repelled. In response, home side manager DarÃÂo Pereyra would sub in attacking midfielder Reinaldo for defender ÃÂlvaro, looking to better their offensive efforts and break the deadlock. As a result, Sidney was moved back to the defense, and the home side began to play with only one defensive midfielder. River Plate's Ramón DÃÂaz immediately replied to this change. He substituted Francescoli for defender Diego Placente, as they continued to rely on a strong defensive effort in order to remain the score. São Paulo were unable to improve under the new formation, but they would have two last chances. At the 75-minute mark, Serginho followed up on an individual play by taking a shot that rattled the crossbar. Seven minutes later, a França shot hit the post. Their offensive game plan was unable to pose any further threat, and River Plate managed to hold on to the draw.
At the Estadio Monumental, São Paulo started the game by applying pressure. Thanks to their superior ball control and fast-paced plays, they managed to funnel danger through Serginho and Alexandre, although failing to put any shots on target. Nonetheless, the first scoring chance fell to River Plate nearing the tenth minute; referee Ubaldo Aquino pointed to a handball by defender ÃÂlvaro after a cross, and awarded a penalty to the home side. Enzo Francescoli stepped up to take the penalty, but his effort was denied by Roger, who dived to his left. The São Paulo goalkeeper kept the match level once again in the 21st minute, when he prevented an own goal by teammate EdmÃÂlson. At the half-hour mark, midfielder Marcelinho ParaÃÂba was sent off as a result of an accumulation of cards, leaving the visitors a player down. However, both sides remained unable to score, and the half ended goalless.
During the interval, River Plate manager Ramón DÃÂaz told his team to focus on getting behind the São Paulo full-backs, who kept pushing forward. Just a minute after the restart, pressing high earned them the opening goal as Marcelo Salas recovered possession and passed to Gallardo, who went on to orchestrate an attack. Gallardo then filtered the ball over to Francescoli, who looked up and sent a cross that Salas finished to give River Plate the lead. Not long after, Aquino missed a possible penalty for São Paulo, and ruled instead a back pass to goalkeeper Germán Burgos, awarding a free kick inside the area. The visitors went on to score from the set piece, but the goal was disallowed after the referee indicated Burgos had stepped forward before the play resumed. On the follow-up chance, São Paulo managed to equalise through Dodô, who unleashed a long-range shot to make it 1âÂÂ1. Nonetheless, River Plate returned the favour with another swift response: in the 57th minute, Diego Placente anticipated a play in defense and played the ball for Salas, who controlled it past EdmÃÂlson and ÃÂlvaro, and then beat Roger, who had stepped forward to try to deny him. At the 75-minute mark, the home side were also reduced to ten players, as Leonardo Astrada received a second booking and was consequently sent off. In response, Ramón DÃÂaz subbed in fellow midfielder Leonel Gancedo, as they looked to stabilize. They continued to create scoring prospects, following two efforts in quick succession from Salas and Juan Pablo SorÃÂn, which Roger successfully fended off. Ultimately, neither team managed to score any further goals, and Aquino blew for full-time with the final result of 2âÂÂ1 to River Plate.
River Plate manager Ramón DÃÂaz was euphoric after the win. In the midst of celebration, he stated: "This team is top-notch; it's a huge satisfaction to be a part of it. I owe everything to these players and to the fans." He also reflected on the game: "We showed what we're made of. We won by displaying great prowess in our football [...] Exactly how we meant to do it."
The São Paulo side, for their part, showed disappointment following the loss. Midfielder Paulo Silas, albeit unable to play in the match, criticized referee Ubaldo Aquino: "They didn't respect us. The referee gave the penalty from midfield. Even if we played for 15 hours, São Paulo wouldn't win this final. Aquino didn't deserve to referee this game." DarÃÂo Pereyra followed up by accusing the match official of underperforming: "I don't like to talk about the refereeing, but I can't help but say I was not satisfied at all with his performance."
Chilean striker Marcelo Salas scored four goals during the Supercopa Libertadores knockout stages, allowing his team to be crowned champions of the tournament for the first time. In total, he had scored seven goals during the competition, placing just behind Ivo Basay on the top scoring list. Among other merits, one of them being the top scorer for River Plate in the 1997 Torneo Apertura, Salas won the South American Footballer of the Year award.
The finals of the Supercopa Libertadores occurred within a packed domestic schedule for River Plate, who were competing alongside Boca Juniors for the Torneo Apertura. Four days after the second leg, Salas would score on a 1âÂÂ1 draw against Argentinos Juniors to steer one point clear of their second-placed rivals and win the Argentine league for the third consecutive time. In turn, São Paulo had finished 12th in the first phase of the Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, and thus were unqualified to enter the league play-offs.