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2020 Paraguayan Primera División season

The 2020 División Profesional season (officially the Copa de Primera TIGO-Visión Banco 2020 for sponsorship reasons) was the 86th season of the Paraguayan Primera División, the top-flight professional football league in Paraguay. The season began on 17 January and ended on 30 December. The fixtures for the season were announced on 16 December 2019.[1] Olimpia were the defending champions after winning both tournaments of the 2019 season.

Primera División
Season2020
Dates17 January – 30 December 2020
ChampionsApertura: Cerro Porteño (33rd title)
Clausura: Olimpia (45th title)
RelegatedSan Lorenzo
General Díaz
Copa LibertadoresCerro Porteño
Olimpia
Libertad
Guaraní
Copa SudamericanaNacional
Guaireña
12 de Octubre
River Plate
Matches played205
Goals scored548 (2.67 per match)
Top goalscorerApertura: Sebastián Ferreira (13 goals)
Clausura: Jorge Recalde (9 goals)
Biggest home winOlimpia 7–0 Sportivo Luqueño
(19 September)
Biggest away winRiver Plate 0–4 Olimpia
(26 August)
Highest scoringLibertad 5–2 Guaireña
(5 September)
General Díaz 2–5 Sol de América
(19 November)
Nacional 4–3 Cerro Porteño
(7 December)
← 2019
2021 →

On 26 September, Cerro Porteño won the Torneo Apertura and clinched their thirty-third domestic championship with one match to spare following a 3–1 victory over River Plate,[2] while the Torneo Clausura was won by Olimpia who clinched their forty-fifth domestic championship after defeating Guaraní on penalties in the final played on 30 December.

The tournament was suspended from 13 March to 21 July due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[3]

Teams

Twelve teams competed in the season: the top ten teams in the relegation table of the previous season, and two teams promoted from the División Intermedia. The new teams were 2019 División Intermedia champions Guaireña and runners-up 12 de Octubre, with the former competing in the top tier for the first time ever and the latter returning after a five-year absence. Both teams replaced Deportivo Capiatá and Deportivo Santaní, who were relegated to the second tier after seven and two years, respectively.

Stadia and locations

class=notpageimage|
Locations of the 2020 Primera División teams
TeamManagerCityStadium[note 1]Capacity
12 de Octubre Pedro SarabiaItauguáLuis Alberto Salinas10,000
Cerro Porteño Francisco ArceAsunciónGeneral Pablo Rojas45,000
General Díaz Héctor MarecosLuqueGeneral Adrián Jara3,500
AsunciónRiver Plate[note 2]6,500
San LorenzoGunther Vogel[note 3]5,000
Guaireña Troadio DuarteVillarricaParque del Guairá12,000
ItauguáLuis Alberto Salinas[note 4]10,000
Guaraní Gustavo CostasAsunciónRogelio Livieres6,000
Libertad Juan Samudio (caretaker)AsunciónDr. Nicolás Leoz10,000
Nacional Hernán Rodrigo LópezAsunciónArsenio Erico4,000
Olimpia Néstor GorositoAsunciónManuel Ferreira25,000
River Plate Ariel Galeano (caretaker)AsunciónRiver Plate6,500
San Lorenzo Roberto TorresSan LorenzoGunther Vogel5,000
Sol de América Celso AyalaVilla ElisaLuis Alfonso Giagni10,000
Sportivo Luqueño Luis EscobarLuqueFeliciano Cáceres25,000
San LorenzoGunther Vogel[note 5]5,000
ItauguáLuis Alberto Salinas[note 6]10,000
AsunciónRiver Plate[note 7]6,500

Managerial changes

TeamOutgoing managerManner of departureDate of vacancyPosition in tableIncoming managerDate of appointment
Torneo Apertura
Guaireña Troadio DuarteSelf-demoted to assistant7 December 2019[4]Pre-season Mario Jacquet7 December 2019[4]
Cerro Porteño Víctor BernayEnd of caretaker spell15 December 2019[5] Francisco Arce20 December 2019[6]
Libertad José ChamotEnd of contract15 December 2019[7] Ramón Díaz17 December 2019[8]
Nacional Francisco ArceSigned by Cerro Porteño19 December 2019[6] Roberto Torres20 December 2019[9]
Guaireña Mario JacquetResigned12 January 2020[10] Troadio Duarte13 January 2020[11]
Sol de América Pablo EscobarMutual consent2 February 2020[12]9th Luis Islas2 February 2020[13]
12 de Octubre Daniel FarrarSacked21 February 2020[14]12th Mario Jara21 February 2020[14]
Sportivo Luqueño Celso Ayala1 March 2020[15]10th Hernán Rodrigo López2 March 2020[16]
River Plate Marcelo Philipp2 March 2020[17]9th Celso Ayala2 March 2020[17]
General Díaz Cristian MartínezResigned26 June 2020[18]12th Robert Pereira26 June 2020[18]
Sol de América Luis IslasSacked28 July 2020[19]8th Sergio Órteman28 July 2020[20]
San Lorenzo Sergio ÓrtemanMutual consent28 July 2020[21]11th Cristian Martínez28 July 2020[22]
Sportivo Luqueño Hernán Rodrigo LópezResigned11 September 2020[23]8th Carlos Humberto Paredes12 September 2020[24]
Nacional Roberto TorresSacked16 September 2020[25]6th Hernán Rodrigo López16 September 2020[25]
San Lorenzo Cristian Martínez16 September 2020[26]12th Roberto Torres16 September 2020[27]
Libertad Ramón DíazResigned24 September 2020[28]3rd Gustavo Morínigo24 September 2020[29]
Torneo Clausura
General Díaz Robert PereiraSacked6 October 2020[30]Pre-tournament Julio Javier Doldán (caretaker)6 October 2020[31]
Olimpia Daniel Garnero26 October 2020[32]9th Enrique Landaida (caretaker)26 October 2020[33]
River Plate Celso Ayala26 October 2020[34]12th Carlos Aitor García26 October 2020[34]
Sportivo Luqueño Carlos Humberto Paredes8 November 2020[35]8th Luis Escobar9 November 2020[36]
Olimpia Enrique LandaidaEnd of caretaker spell11 November 2020[37]1st Néstor Gorosito4 November 2020[note 1][38]
General Díaz Julio Javier Doldán11 November 202012th Héctor Marecos11 November 2020[39]
12 de Octubre Mario JaraSacked12 November 2020[40]8th Pedro Sarabia13 November 2020[40]
River Plate Carlos Aitor García7 December 2020[41]11th Ariel Galeano (caretaker)8 December 2020[42]
Sol de América Sergio Órteman9 December 2020[43]7th Celso Ayala9 December 2020[43]
Libertad Gustavo Morínigo16 December 2020[44]5th Juan Samudio (caretaker)16 December 2020[45]

Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic

On 10 March, and following a 15-day suspension of all public or private mass gathering events ordered by the Paraguayan government as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Paraguayan Football Association announced that every match of its official competitions, including the Primera División, would be played behind closed doors during that period of time.[46] However, on 13 March the APF announced the suspension of the tournament, following advise from its Medical Directorate.[47]

On 28 May 2020, the APF and the presidents of the 12 Primera División clubs reached an agreement to resume the competition on 17 July, with the ninth round of the Torneo Apertura.[48] The plan to resume competition included socialization of health protocols to the Paraguayan government and application of COVID-19 tests before the start of individual training sessions on 10 June, with collective training to resume between 16 and 22 June.[49] On the early morning of 17 July, within hours of the planned resumption of the competition, the APF announced the postponement of the matches involving 12 de Octubre, Guaraní and San Lorenzo, due to the confirmation of COVID-19 cases in those clubs,[50] and after consultation with its Medical Directorate as well as the presidents of the league's 12 clubs, the governing body officially announced the postponement of the return of the competition to at least 22 July.[51]

Following new tests in those three clubs which reported negative results, the competition was eventually confirmed to resume on 21 July, with the River Plate vs. Nacional and Cerro Porteño vs. Libertad matches.

Due to the four-month suspension of the season caused by the pandemic, the format for the Torneo Clausura had to be altered. Instead of the originally scheduled double round-robin, there was a first stage in which teams played each other once for a total of 11 games, five of which at home and another away, with the remaining match (on the sixth matchday) being played on neutral ground. The top eight teams after that single round-robin stage qualified for a play-off stage, with the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final to be played as single matches, and a penalty shootout deciding the winner in case of a draw.[52]

Torneo Apertura

The Campeonato de Apertura, named "Dr. Emilio Insfrán Villalba", was the 121st official championship of the Primera División and the first championship of the 2020 season. It started on 17 January and concluded on 4 October. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was scheduled to conclude on 31 May.[1]

Standings

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsQualification
1Cerro Porteño (C)2215523714+2350Qualification for Copa Libertadores group stage
2Olimpia2213635420+3445
3Libertad2213544323+2044
4Guaraní2211833016+1441
5River Plate228592330−729
6Guaireña226973029+127
7Nacional226792222025
8Sportivo Luqueño226792232−1025
912 de Octubre2256112339−1621
10Sol de América2247112340−1719
11San Lorenzo22210101836−1816
12General Díaz2235142246−2414
Source: APF, Soccerway
Rules for classification: 1) Points, 2) Playoff game (only if needed to decide championship between two teams), 3) Goal difference, 4) Goals for, 5) Away goals for, 6) Drawing of lots.
(C) Champions

Results

Home \ Away12OCCPGENGFCGUALIBNACOLIRIVSSLSOLSLU
12 de Octubre—1–43–30–21–30–30–20–30–11–03–13–2
Cerro Porteño1–0—0–12–21–02–11–02–03–14–14–12–1
General Díaz1–11–3—1–10–10–20–21–32–12–11–11–3
Guaireña3–31–22–1—1–13–20–00–12–04–02–00–1
Guaraní2–21–00–00–0—1–11–00–3[a]3–00–01–13–0
Libertad1–10–05–15–21–3—2–01–12–13–02–10–0
Nacional0–00–03–03–01–21–2—1–01–22–02–21–2
Olimpia4–01–12–11–11–22–14–0—1–14–24–07–0
River Plate0–20–23–22–11–01–21–10–4—4–23–00–0
San Lorenzo1–01–12–11–11–11–21–12–20–0—1–10–0
Sol de América0–10–13–12–11–21–31–12–40–02–1—1–0
Sportivo Luqueño2–10–14–11–10–31–21–02–20–10–02–2—
Source: Soccerway
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Top goalscorers

RankNameClubGoals
1 Sebastián FerreiraLibertad13
2 Roque Santa CruzOlimpia10
3 Néstor CamachoOlimpia9
4 Óscar CardozoLibertad8
Fernando FernándezGuaraní
Pablo Zeballos12 de Octubre
7 Raúl BobadillaGuaraní7
Diego ChurínCerro Porteño
Derlis GonzálezOlimpia
Isidro PittaSportivo Luqueño / Olimpia
Jorge RecaldeOlimpia

Source: Soccerway

Torneo Clausura

The Campeonato de Clausura, named "Profesor Cristóbal Maldonado", was the 122nd official championship of the Primera División and the second championship of the 2020 season. It started on 16 October and concluded on 30 December with the final.[52]

First stage

Standings

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsQualification
112 de Octubre116231512+320Advance to play-offs
2Nacional114701812+619
3Cerro Porteño115421611+519
4Libertad115332015+518
5Guaraní11533117+418
6Olimpia115242016+417
7Sol de América114431914+516
8Guaireña113531014−414
9San Lorenzo112631315−212
10Sportivo Luqueño113261319−611
11River Plate112361017−79
12General Díaz110381225−133
Source: APF, Soccerway
Rules for classification: 1) Points, 2) Playoff game (only if needed to decide championship between two teams), 3) Goal difference, 4) Goals for, 5) Away goals for, 6) Drawing of lots.

Results

Home \ Away12OCCPGENGFCGUALIBNACOLIRIVSSLSOLSLU
12 de Octubre—2–12–13–01–0————0–1——
Cerro Porteño——3–1——1–0—1–0—1–10–02–0
General Díaz—————3–4——0–00–12–50–1
Guaireña—1–11–1——0–3—2–1—2–2—1–0
Guaraní—1–12–01–0———2–0—2–1—2–1
Libertad3–0———1–1—0–22–13–1—0–2—
Nacional1–14–32–20–00–0———————
Olimpia2–1—4–2———1–1—3–13–1——
River Plate1–21–2—1–21–0—1–1—————
San Lorenzo—————2–21–1—0–0—2–21–2
Sol de América0–0——1–11–0—2–31–32–3———
Sportivo Luqueño2–3————2–21–32–22–0—0–3—
Source: Soccerway
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Play-offs

Quarter-finalsSemi-finalsFinal
         
112 de Octubre1
8Guaireña2
8Guaireña0
5Guaraní1
4Libertad1
5Guaraní3
5Guaraní2 (4)
6Olimpia (p)2 (5)
2Nacional0
7Sol de América1
7Sol de América2
6Olimpia4
3Cerro Porteño1 (1)
6Olimpia (p)1 (4)

Quarter-finals

22 December 2020 (2020-12-22) Nacional0–1 Sol de América Asunción
18:30Report
  • Valdez 82'
Stadium: Manuel Ferreira
Attendance: 0
Referee: Mario Díaz de Vivar
22 December 2020 (2020-12-22) Cerro Porteño1–1
(1–4 p)		 Olimpia Asunción
21:00
  • Giménez 15'
Report
Stadium: Defensores del Chaco
Attendance: 0
Referee: Éber Aquino
Penalties
23 December 2020 (2020-12-23) 12 de Octubre1–2 Guaireña Villa Elisa
18:30
  • Garcete 74'
Report
  • González 8', 24'
Stadium: Luis Alfonso Giagni
Attendance: 0
Referee: José Méndez
23 December 2020 (2020-12-23) Libertad1–3 Guaraní Luque
21:00
Report
Stadium: Feliciano Cáceres
Attendance: 0
Referee: Juan Gabriel Benítez

Semi-finals

27 December 2020 (2020-12-27) Sol de América2–4 Olimpia Asunción
18:30
Report
Stadium: Defensores del Chaco
Attendance: 0
Referee: Carlos Benítez
27 December 2020 (2020-12-27) Guaireña0–1 Guaraní Asunción
21:00Report
Stadium: General Pablo Rojas
Attendance: 0
Referee: Mario Díaz de Vivar

Final

Guaraní2–2Olimpia
Report
Penalties
4–5
Attendance: 0
Referee: Juan Gabriel Benítez

Top goalscorers

RankNameClubGoals
1 Jorge RecaldeOlimpia9
2 Roque Santa CruzOlimpia7
3 Pablo VelázquezGeneral Díaz6
4 Óscar CardozoLibertad5
Pablo Zeballos12 de Octubre
6 Cecilio DomínguezGuaraní4
Sebastián FerreiraLibertad
Jorge OrtegaSportivo Luqueño
Nildo VieraSol de América

Source: Soccerway

Aggregate table

PosTeamPldWDLGFGAGDPtsQualification
1Cerro Porteño (C)3320945325+2869Qualification for Copa Libertadores group stage
2Olimpia (C)3318877436+3862
3Libertad3318876338+2562Qualification for Copa Libertadores second stage
4Guaraní33161164123+1859Qualification for Copa Libertadores first stage
5Nacional33101494034+644Qualification for Copa Sudamericana first stage[a]
6Guaireña33914104043−341
712 de Octubre33118143851−1341
8River Plate33108153347−1438
9Sportivo Luqueño3399153551−1636
10Sol de América33811144254−1235
11San Lorenzo33416133151−2028
12General Díaz3338223471−3717
Source: APF
Rules for classification: 1) Points, 2) Playoff game (only if needed to decide international qualification between two teams), 3) Goal difference, 4) Goals for, 5) Away goals for, 6) Drawing of lots.
(C) Champions
Notes:

Relegation

Relegation is determined at the end of the season by computing an average of the number of points earned per game over the past three seasons. The two teams with the lowest average will be relegated to the División Intermedia for the following season.

Pos
Team
2018
Pts		2019
Pts		2020
Pts		Total
Pts		Total
Pld		AvgRelegation
1Olimpia102108622721212.248
2Cerro Porteño8280692311211.909
3Libertad7685622231211.843
4Guaraní4869591761211.455
5Nacional6552441611211.331
6Sol de América6357351551211.281
7Guaireña——4141331.242
812 de Octubre——4141331.242
9River Plate—523890771.169
10Sportivo Luqueño4652361341211.107
11San Lorenzo (R)—492877771Relegation to División Intermedia
12General Díaz (R)4641161031210.851

Updated to matches played on 19 December 2020. Source: APF

References

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