SAN SALVADOR – Real Esteli of Nicaragua picked up their third victory in as many matches in Group B of the 2023 Concacaf Central American Cup in a 2-0 final with El Salvador’s CD FAS on Tuesday night at the Estadio Las Delicias in Santa Tecla, El Salvador.
Juan Barrera scored a goal in each half to pace the visiting Nicaraguans to their third straight clean sheet victory. With the result, Real Esteli have already advanced to the quarterfinal stage of the tournament after just three matches.
After some early moments from FAS, Real Esteli worked their way into the affair and issued their first warning in the 11’ when Byron Bonilla hooked a show wide.
Bonilla would wreak havoc again in the 17’ and this time it yielded a penalty when he was clipped in the FAS area on a cutback move. Juan Barrera stepped up to take the penalty kick and stroked home the spot kick for a 1-0 lead.
Real Esteli then almost added a second in first half stoppage time on a lapse of concentration from the FAS defense, but the visiting Nicaraguans were unable to convert.
FAS sought an answer in the second half, but Real Esteli refused to bunker in and instead the Pinolero outfit added a crucial second goal in the 74’.
Henry Garcia fed Barrera with a pass and the 34-year-old midfielder did the rest with an excellent finish to make it 2-0 to Real Esteli.
From there, the Real Esteli defense took over to nail down the clean sheet victory and punch their ticket to the next phase.
