Copa Libertadores: Atletico Tucuman beats El Nacional in Argentina kits

It was the biggest victory in Atletico Tucuman's 115-year history, but it almost never happened.

On Tuesday night, at the dizzying altitude of Quito, Ecuador, Tucuman beat El Nacional 1-0 in the Copa Libertadores and advanced to the tournament's third stage with a 3-2 win on aggregate. CONMEBOL's regulations, however, dictate El Decano should have forfeited the second leg.

The paperwork for Tucuman's flight to Quito wasn't in order and permission to fly to the capital of Ecuador wasn't granted, details ESPN FC's Tim Vickery. As a result, El Decano boarded another plane and arrived at Estadio Olimpico Atahualpa over 45 minutes late. CONMEBOL's rules dictate that a 45-minute wait is permissible but a club forfeits by showing up any later.

In a complete disregard for its own law and under protest from El Nacional, CONMEBOL allowed the game to be played. Tucuman then took the pitch with kits being used by Argentina's under-20 team, which, as chance would have it, is participating at the Sudamericano Sub 20 in Ecuador. El Decano and La Albiceleste share the same colour scheme of sky blue and white. It was the chaos and charm of the Copa Libertadores all wrapped up into one messy package.

Once the match finally kicked off an hour-and-a-half after initially scheduled, Fernando Zampedri, who was wearing Lautaro Martinez's kit, scored the lone goal in the 64th minute, heading the ball over Darwin Cuero.

Speaking after the final whistle, Tucuman's manager Pablo Lavallen was livid about what transpired at the airport in Guayaquil, Ecuador, where El Decano had prepared for the second leg before flying to Quito.

"The players, boy," Lavallen said. "This is all because of the players. The truth is that what they did to us is shameless. They stopped our plane for two hours on the runway. I don't know who. Somebody stopped it, boy. Two hours! They stopped the plane for two hours. There you have it. We took the field without warming up. When we arrived, they were threatening us about not playing the match. There you have it. God is just. God is just."

Tito Manjarrez, El Nacional's president, subsequently confirmed his club didn't order the game to go ahead, saying: "The decision to play was CONMEBOL's."

Tucuman will battle Club Junior of Barranquilla, Colombia in the third stage of the Copa Libertadores.