TPham31@tpham31

☆☆☆☆☆★★★★★Sep 28

I was lucky enough to watch this match live at the stadium with my brother. Medellín only needed to win that day to qualify for the final. The atmosphere was incredible—the stadium was packed, with the entire fanbase dreaming of making it through. The match started with an incredible goal from Leider Berrío, still the best goal I’ve ever seen at the stadium. I remember how Medellín goes beyond just football and feelings take over: I hugged the stranger standing next to me, and he said, as if he had known me his whole life, “What a goal, right?” But the DIM DNA never lets you relax, and because of a stupid mistake, we ended up giving away the equalizer—the dumbest blunder I’ve ever seen. The quality of the match obviously dropped. It wasn’t a European game where the world’s biggest and most talented stars were playing; it was a Colombian league match. The end of the game was getting closer, and my brother told me, “Let’s leave early so we can catch the metro.” But I told him to wait a little longer. Then, in the 93rd minute, Arizala scored a dramatic late goal that sent the entire stadium into absolute madness and secured our place in that devastating final. It wouldn’t be a five-star rating if, whenever I remember this match, I didn’t also remember that painful final.