As fourth division side Sacachispas approached their opening round Copa Argentina matchup against Primera Division club Arsenal de Sarandi, they knew they needed a heroic effort to pull off the upset. Despite Sarandi’s current struggles, they are still a first division side, while Sacachispas is languishing in the mid-table of the Primera C.
With these seemingly insurmountable odds in mind, the gutsy underdogs took their cues from Hollywood, lining up for their customary pre-match photo dressed as various superheroes, including Batman, The Incredible Hulk, Ironman, Captain America, Wolverine, and even Darth Vader. We’ll excuse the brand inconsistency between DC, Marvel, and Star Wars because it gave us this glorious video:
https://twitter.com/diepanda_13/status/867117722999697413
Of course, once the match got underway, we expected these superheroes to turn back into their civilian alter egos. After Franco Fragapane put Sarandi up 1-0 early in the 2nd half, it seemed like the superhero story would come to a quick ending, but it was not to be. Sacachispas rallied, down a man and a goal, answering with Julio Cesar Serrano’s Ironman-like equalizer in the 77th minute. The score held until the end of the match, where the Primera C club completed the upset on penalty kicks, 6-5, notching the biggest win in their club’s history.
Sacachispas will now play the winner of the Sarmiento Junin-Brown Adrogue matchup as they try to continue their underdog bid in the tournament. At stake is a spot in the Supercopa Argentina, where the winner of the Copa will face the champions of the Primera División.
What will Sacachispas come up with for their squad photo in the round of 32 game? After all, dressing up is no new thing to the club: they’ve had colorful pre-match photos all season long. They have dressed up as wizards, worn Santa hats, and even donned bunny ears in team photos, and they’ll need every bit of magic and fairy dust to keep their bid for the Copa alive.