Miguel Ángel Juárez took it, breaking the rules. The referee allowed the goal, and Lanús were relegated illegitimately. The club reclaimed, but the Argentine football association did not respond. In Primera B Lanús had a very poor season and was eventually relegated to the Third Division (Primera C). With debts of over US$2 million, the club faced its worst crisis. By 1979 the club only had 2,000 members facing its first season in the Third Division. The political groups linked with the club's debts decided to forget its differences with the club and helped the club face forward. Lanús won the 1981 Primera C title various fixtures before the season ended. The club, with help from the fans, was promoted to the Second Division once again having more than 10,000 members. In 1984 the team reached the semifinals of the promotion playoff to the First Division, when the team had to face Racing Club. In the first leg, Racing Club beat Lanús 2–0. In the second leg, played in Independiente's stadium, the referee gave Racing Club a controversial penalty kick after disallowing a Lanús goal. Racing Club scored a goal, but the match was eventually suspended because of Lanús' fans. The match was continued at Atlanta's stadium some days after, and Lanús were down 2–1 after dominating the game. The referee, Emilio Misic, mistakenly gave the final whistle 5 minutes before the end of regulation. The Racing Club players already started celebrating, so the referee used that excuse not to reverse the decision. Lanús was once again disadvantaged because of a referee error, therefore losing the series and failing to gain promotion to the First Division. Already having more than 25,000 members, the team was promoted to the Second Division in 1986. With Miguel Ángel Russo as manager, the team returned to the First Division after 13 years. Thanks to the team's goalkeeper, Alcides Herrera, the team beat Quilmes in the finals of the promotion playoff. The club also started to repair the old stadium made of wood. Lanús made a poor campaign in Primera División being relegated to Primera B Nacional (the second division since 1986). The club's executives decided to keep Miguel Ángel Russo as manager, regardless of relegation. The resurrection: the 1990s Lanús returned to the top division on 24 May 1992, when more than 30,000 supporters saw how Lanús beat Deportivo Maipú 2–0 winning the 1991–92