Riquelme addresses Vélez protest and makes Boca’s position clear: “Matches are won on the field”

Juan Román Riquelme has reduced Boca’s response to Vélez’s formal protest to one sentence: “Matches are won on the field.”

The dispute followed Boca’s Copa Argentina round-of-16 match against Vélez at Córdoba’s Mario Alberto Kempes Stadium. The teams drew 0-0, and Boca advanced by winning the penalty shootout.

Vélez then filed a complaint with the Argentine Football Association over Boca’s inclusion of six foreign players on the match roster. The list included Colombians Álvaro Montero and Sebastián Villa, Uruguay’s Leandro Lozano, Ecuador’s Enner Valencia, Chile’s Carlos Palacios and Paraguay’s Ángel Romero. The first five played, while Romero remained on the bench.

The protest focuses on Article 31 of the collective labor agreement between the AFA and Futbolistas Argentinos Agremiados. The provision allows clubs to register up to six foreign players, but only five may sign the roster for an official match.

Vélez argues that Romero’s inclusion on the roster itself constituted a violation and has asked to be awarded a place in the quarterfinals. Boca’s favorable interpretation holds that a player must enter the field for an improper lineup to occur. The AFA Disciplinary Tribunal will decide how to interpret “participation” under the disciplinary code and whether the sporting result should change.

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Matches are won on the field.