Atletico Nacional win Copa Colombia, earn Libertadores spot
Medellin: Daniel Bocanegra scored with a 91st-minute free kick as Atletico Nacional secured a berth in next year’s Copa Libertadores by completing a 4-3 aggregate victory over Once Caldas in the Copa Colombia final.
Bocanegra on Thursday sent a curling 25-yard effort into the top left corner of Jose Cuadrado’s goal to hand the hosts a 2-1 win on the night after a 2-2 draw in last week’s first leg in Manizales, reports Xinhua news agency.
Vladimir Hernandez had given Nacional the lead with a deflected long-range effort on the stroke of halftime at their Atanasio Girardot Stadium.
Johan Carbonaro then put the visitors on even terms by rifling in from 20 yards in the 74th minute as the final looked headed for a penalty shootout.
But the Medellin side drew a foul on the edge of the penalty box in the first minute of stoppage time and Bocanegra’s resultant set piece sent the home fans into raptures.
Atletico Nacional and Once Caldas are the only Colombian teams to have won the Copa Libertadores.
Nacional were crowned champions of South America’s top club competition in 1989 and 2016 while Once Caldas were victorious in 2004.