“By the end, Boca Juniors had been so comprehensively beaten that, as the South American football expert Rupert Fryer joked, they could not even raise themselves for the traditional post-Copa Libertadores final punch-up. Corinthians won 2-0 after a 1-1 draw in the first leg but the gulf between the sides was so vast, the chances of a comeback so slight, that it may as well have been quadruple that. And so, in their centenary year, seven months after the death of Sócrates, the most iconic player in their history, Corinthians won the Copa Libertadores for the first time. No more will there be cracks about ‘the 100-year-old virgin’.” Guardian – Jonathan Wilson

Corinthian values
“The 2012 Copa Libertadores final ended up being fought out between two of South America’s biggest clubs. Boca Juniors, one of the competition’s most successful sides, who have six titles and are only one behind all-time record holders Independiente, and Corinthians, a club that despite their grand stature were hoping to win their first ever Copa. After a hard-fought couple of legs, it was Corinthians who came out on top, to become the 23rd different club to win the trophy.” ESPN