Rosario Central and Corinthians Meet Again in the 2026 Libertadores, 26 Years After That Epic Series

Some eliminations sting, and others, with time, turn into something like an emotional trophy. Rosario Central's exit against Corinthians in 2000 belongs to that second group. Now that the round of 16 draw has brought those two names back together for the 2026 Libertadores, folks in Arroyito wasted no time traveling back 26 years.

That Central side under Edgardo "El Patón" Bauza was built on pure character. The club had reached that Libertadores as the top qualifier after winning the 1998 Apertura, the 1999 Clausura and the 1999 Apertura, and it finished second in the group stage, behind América de Cali, with Juan Antonio Pizzi scoring goals and Ezequiel González dictating the play. Waiting on the other side was a Corinthians squad loaded with big names: Dida, Vampeta, Marcelinho Carioca, Edílson and Luizão, all serious contenders for the continental title.

A Lead That Wasn't Enough

On May 3, 2000, the Gigante de Arroyito turned into a party. Central played, arguably, one of its best matches of that campaign and jumped out to a 3-1 lead with goals from Pizzi, Pablo Cappelletti and Daniel Maceratesi. It looked like a done deal. But in stoppage time, Luizão popped up to make it 3-2, a goal that felt like a mere consolation at the time but would later weigh heavily on the tie.

Bauza's team sinned by not putting the game away with a wider margin that would have let them travel to the Pacaembú with more peace of mind. The players ran out of legs and paid for it when the second goal went in as stoppage time wound down.El Gráfico

The return leg at the Pacaembú, on May 9, was a wild back and forth: Luizão put the hosts ahead, Pizzi equalized with a tremendous right footed strike and, right at the start of the second half, Raúl Gordillo made it 2-1 with a gorgeous angled finish. Edílson and Luizão swung the balance back for Corinthians, 3-2 on the night and a 5-5 aggregate that sent everything to penalties, since extra time wasn't played back then when a tie was level.

The Penalties That Stayed in Memory

That's where Central let itself believe again. Ricardinho and Marcos Senna converted first for the Brazilians, and Pizzi and Canals answered for Central. Edu Gaspar missed, putting Germán Rivarola's conversion ahead for the Canalla, but Luizão leveled things again. Dida saved Ezequiel González's attempt and, with the shootout tied 4-4, Marcelinho Carioca scored his. Gordillo, who had been so influential all series, sent the last penalty wide of the post. Corinthians advanced 4-3.

The scoreline says elimination, but the feeling it left behind was something else entirely.

Central fell like a great team. It showed determination and courage, but lacked the finishing touch needed to close out the series.El Gráfico

That series wasn't an isolated moment. A year later, with much of the same squad, Central reached the semifinals of the 2001 Libertadores, falling on penalties to Cruz Azul. And before that, back in 1975, under Carlos Timoteo Griguol with Mario Kempes on the field, the club had already gone that far. The 2000 series confirmed, in the end, that Bauza's project was built to compete with anyone on equal terms.

Now, with different protagonists and a different game, history brings the same two crests back together. Pizzi, Bauza, Dida and Luizão are no longer on the field, but the memory of that series is still as alive in Arroyito as if it had ended yesterday.