Last-Gasp Trasandino Strike Sinks Deportes Rengo in Five-Goal Thriller, Deepens Rengo’s Relegation Fears

ESTADIO MUNICIPAL GUILLERMO GUZMÁN DÍAZ—Even as the valley air grew heavy with late-spring tension, neither Deportes Rengo nor Trasandino appeared willing to settle for anonymity. In a match that twisted and snapped like a live wire, Trasandino delivered a 3-2 victory with a dramatic 90th-minute winner—a result that not only cements their place in the upper half of Segunda División, but also tightens the trapdoor beneath Rengo as the relegation battle intensifies.

For much of the evening, Rengo’s supporters believed this might be a rare moment of respite. The hosts, locked in 12th place and desperate to escape the quicksand of a one-win-in-five run, seized initiative early. The breakthrough came in the 22nd minute when a swift Rengo attack sliced open Trasandino, the home forward tucking away a low cross to ignite the stands and put the pressure squarely on the visitors.

But if Rengo hoped to ride that momentum, they quickly ran aground. Trasandino, whose own form has veered from the sublime (a 5-2 rout of San Antonio Unido) to the disastrous (a 0-5 collapse at D. Puerto Montt), soon demonstrated why they’ve never truly been out of the promotion conversation. In the 36th minute, they drew level with a clever move down the right, culminating in a poacher’s finish from close range. Just seven minutes later, on the cusp of halftime, Trasandino capitalized on uncertainty in the Rengo box—a looping corner nodded home and the visitors, once behind, trotted off at the interval with a slender advantage.

Rengo, to their credit, responded with rare steel. Recent weeks have been unforgiving—a 1-0 win at Santiago City on October 4 their lone bright spot in a stretch otherwise defined by late collapses and defensive lapses. But here, trailing once more, they leaned into the urgency of their predicament. The second half was played on a knife’s edge, but it was Rengo who found the equalizer in the 72nd minute. A well-worked set piece found its man at the far post, and the crowd erupted anew as hope flickered back to life.

Yet matches between these sides have often turned on a single misstep. When tempers frayed and legs tired in the dying embers, Trasandino’s experience told. In the 90th minute, with Rengo pushing bodies forward in search of a winner, the visitors struck on the counter—springing down the left and carving out a lethal chance that was slotted past the stranded keeper. The gut-punch was delivered, but the drama wasn’t done: moments later, a frustrated Rengo player saw red for a rash tackle, capping a night that began with promise and ended in acrimony.

For Trasandino, who arrived in Rengo on the back of a narrow 1-2 home defeat to Real San Joaquín, this performance was both tonic and testament to their resilience. Now seventh in the table with 25 points from 19 matches (8 wins, 1 draw, 10 losses), they remain outside the automatic promotion spots, but only marginally—a chasing pack with renewed belief. The late winner, their 30th league goal of the season, spoke to a team with attacking options and nerve.

If the result bolsters Trasandino’s credentials, it leaves Deportes Rengo with only more questions and dwindling answers. With 17 points from 19 games (5 wins, 2 draws, 12 losses), the specter of relegation looms larger. Their campaign, punctuated by defensive frailty and an inability to turn fleeting leads into lasting ones, has left them needing a turnaround of both fortune and mentality. The return fixture now holds the prospect of survival stakes—and the memory of this night’s heartbreak will surely linger.

Historically, matches between these clubs have tilted toward unpredictability, and Sunday’s contest was no exception. Yet the stakes have rarely been higher. For Deportes Rengo, the path forward is unrelenting: every match a must-win, every mistake magnified. For Trasandino, the mission is clear—sustain momentum, harness belief, and stake a claim to the promotion race before the season’s end.

With just weeks remaining, the story of the Segunda División is far from written. But after a night like this, it’s clear—each goal, each card, and each late twist may prove decisive.