22 February 1931 - Vélez Takes A Fall

On 22 February 1931, Vélez Sársfield suffered the only loss of their 25-game Pan-American tour, losing to Fall River 5-2.

Vélez had already played fifteen matches of their tour, which included stops in Chile, Peru, Cuba, Mexico, and three games in the United States. The first of the US matches was a 3-1 win over the New York Stars in Brooklyn on 21 February. They then traveled down to Rhode Island for their next match against Fall River.

But they were not facing the Fall River Marksmen, the defending ASL champions. Owner Sam Mark had moved that team to New York where they merged with New York SC to play as the Yankees. Mark offered the use of his Rhode Island stadium to any team willing to relocate there, however, so the Providence Gold Bugs took him up on the offer and became the new Fall River FC.

The 5-2 was the only loss of the tour for Vélez, to go along with 20 wins and 4 draws. And it was one of the high points of Fall River's season, followed by another friendly win three months later over Celtic.

1 December 1994 - Experience Isn't Always Enough

On 1 December 1994, Vélez Sársfield won the Intercontinental Cup, beating three-time champions AC Milan 2-0.

It was the first appearance in the competition for Vélez, who had just won the Copa Libertadores that summer. Their opponents were the defending European Cup champions, AC Milan, who had been in the Intercontinental Cup five times, winning it three times. Their most recent appearance was in 1993, when they lost to São Paulo. So they were looking for redemption the following year against Vélez.

But the Argentinians were prepared for the challenge. Playing before a crowd of almost 48,000 at the National Stadium in Tokyo, they kept them game locked in a scoreless draw at the break. Then, in the second half, they got a pair of goals in an 8-minute span to secure the trophy.

The first goal came through a penalty, converted by defender Roberto Trotta in the 50th minute. In the 57th minute, forward Omar Asad scored an incredible second goal, racing into the box to intercept a poor Milan pass back to the keeper, then turning and firing into the net from a tight angle. The effort led to him being named Man of the Match and took the final score to 2-0.

31 August 1994 - Vélez Topples The Brazilian Giant

On 31 August 1994, Vélez Sársfield won the Copa Libertadores, defeating two-time defending champions São Paulo in a penalty shootout. 

Embodying the joga bonita philosophy of their manager, Tele Santana, São Paulo were in the midst of a tremendous five-year run of success that included one league title (1991), two Campeonato Paulistas (1991, 1992), two Intercontinental Cups (1992, 1993), as well as the 1992 and 1993 Copa Libertadores. They were heavily favored over Vélez Sársfield, who by that point had won a handful of amateur trophies and two league titles (1968, 1993). 

But it was Vélez who took the advantage in the Copa final, winning the first leg 1-0. In the second leg, played on 31 August in São Paulo, the hosts evened the aggregate score with a 33rd minute penalty from striker Luís Antônio Corréa da Costa, better known by his nickname, Müller. 

Still level at the end of regulation, the match went to a penalty shootout. After Vélez defender Roberto Trotta scored with the first kick, keeper José Luis Chilavert guessed correctly, diving to his left to parry the attempt from Sao Paulo's Palhinha. Immediately afterward, Chilavert stepped up to the spot and converted his own attempt as Vélez claimed the trophy by a 3-5 margin in the shootout. 

28 November 1999 - A Hat To Go With His Gloves

On 28 November 1999, Vélez Sársfield defeated Ferro Carril Oeste 6-1 in an Argentina top flight match with a hat-trick from an unlikely source--their goalkeeper.

José Luis Chilavert had joined Vélez in 1991 and helped guide the club to their most successful period, winning 4 domestic titles and 5 international trophies between 1993 and 1998. Along the way, the Paraguayan international earned multiple individual honors, including Argentinian Player of the Year (1996) and South American Player of the Year (1996). He was also named the IFFHS World's Best Goalkeeper three times (1995, 1997, 1998).

In addition to being a strong goalkeeper, he was a skilled free kick marksman, often taking his side's penalty kicks. In the match against Ferro, in fact, all three of his goals came from the spot.

In all, Chilavert scored a total of 62 goals in club and international competitions during his career.

22 February 1931 - Vélez Takes A Fall

On 22 February 1931, Vélez Sársfield suffered the only loss of their 25-game Pan-American tour, falling to Fall River 5-2.

Vélez had already played fifteen matches of their tour, which included stops in Chile, Peru, Cuba, Mexico, and three games in the United States. The first of the US matches was a 3-1 win over the New York Stars in Brooklyn on 21 February. They then traveled down to Rhode Island for their next match against Fall River.

But they were not facing the Fall River Marksmen, the defending ASL champions. Owner Sam Mark had moved that team to New York where they merged with New York SC to play as the Yankees. Mark offered the use of his Rhode Island stadium to any team willing to relocate there, however, so the Providence Gold Bugs took him up on the offer and became the new Fall River FC.

The 5-2 was the only loss of the tour for Vélez, to go along with 20 wins and 4 draws. And it was one of the high points of Fall River's season, followed by another friendly win three months later over Celtic.

1 December 1994 - Experience Isn't Always Enough

On 1 December 1994, Vélez Sársfield won the Intercontinental Cup, beating three-time champions AC Milan 2-0.

It was the first appearance in the competition for Vélez, who had just won the Copa Libertadores that summer. Their opponents were the defending European Cup champions, AC Milan, who had been in the Intercontinental Cup five times, winning it three times. Their most recent appearance was in 1993, when they lost to São Paulo. So they were looking for redemption the following year against Vélez.

But the Argentinians were prepared for the challenge. Playing before a crowd of almost 48,000 at the National Stadium in Tokyo, they kept them game locked in a scoreless draw at the break. Then, in the second half, they got a pair of goals in an 8-minute span to secure the trophy.

The first goal came through a penalty, converted by defender Roberto Trotta in the 50th minute. In the 57th minute, forward Omar Asad scored an incredible second goal, racing into the box to intercept a poor Milan pass back to the keeper, then turning and firing into the net from a tight angle. The effort led to him being named Man of the Match and took the final score to 2-0.

31 August 1994 - Vélez Topples The Brazilian Giant

On 31 August 1994, Vélez Sársfield won the Copa Libertadores, defeating two-time defending champions São Paulo in a penalty shootout.

Embodying the joga bonita philosophy of their manager, Tele Santana, São Paulo were in the midst of a tremendous five-year run of success that included one league title (1991), two Campeonato Paulistas (1991, 1992), two Intercontinental Cups (1992, 1993), as well as the 1992 and 1993 Copa Libertadores. They were heavily favored over Vélez Sársfield, who by that point had won a handful of amateur trophies and two league titles (1968, 1993).

But it was Vélez who took the advantage in the Copa final, winning the first leg 1-0. In the second leg, played on 31 August in São Paulo, the hosts evened the aggregate score with a 33rd minute penalty from striker Luís Antônio Corréa da Costa, better known by his nickname, Müller.

Still level at the end of regulation, the match went to a penalty shootout. After Vélez defender Roberto Trotta scored with the first kick, keeper José Luis Chilavert guessed correctly, diving to his left to parry the attempt from Sao Paulo's Palhinha. Immediately afterward, Chilavert stepped up to the spot and converted his own attempt as Vélez claimed the trophy by a 3-5 margin in the shootout.

28 November 1999 - A Hat To Go With His Gloves

On 28 November 1999, Vélez Sársfield defeated Ferro Carril Oeste 6-1 in an Argentina top flight match with a hat-trick from an unlikely source--their goalkeeper.

José Luis Chilavert had joined Vélez in 1991 and helped guide the club to their most successful period, winning 4 domestic titles and 5 international trophies between 1993 and 1998. Along the way, the Paraguayan international earned multiple individual honors, including Argentinian Player of the Year (1996) and South American Player of the Year (1996). He was also named the IFFHS World's Best Goalkeeper three times (1995, 1997, 1998).

In addition to being a strong goalkeeper, he was a skilled free kick marksman, often taking his side's penalty kicks. In the match against Ferro, in fact, all three of his goals came from the spot.

In all, Chilavert scored a total of 62 goals in club and international competitions during his career.