third and qualifying for the international cups (2004 Copa Sudamericana and 2005 Copa Libertadores). In Copa Libertadores, Banfield qualified to the knockout stage after finishing 2nd. to UANL Tigres in its group. The team then eliminated Independiente Medellín in the Round of 16 with a 5–0 aggregate but lost in quarterfinals by River Plate. Banfield finished in 7th place in the Cup, reaching 23rd place in the FIFA Club World Ranking. In this period, Banfield played 5 international cups in 3 years, sneaking into the top 8 teams on the continent and selling players to European clubs such as Villareal, Anderlech, Olympique de Marseille and Liverpool. These campaigns also allowed the construction of the current stalls and the Microstadium in front of the Headquarters. In 2009, after an acceptable performance in that year's Clausura Tournament, Banfield played the Apertura, still with Falcioni as coach. The most frequent lineups were: Cristian Lucchetti, Julio Barraza, Sebastián Méndez, Víctor López, Marcelo Bustamante, Maximiliano Bustos, Walter Erviti, Marcelo Quinteros, James Rodríguez, Sebastián Fernández and Santiago Silva (who later became the top scorer of that tournament). Banfield got off to a successful start, defeating teams like 2009 Clausura tournament champion Vélez Sársfield, Newell's Old Boys and drawing 0–0 with Rosario Central. As the season progressed, Banfield gradually consolidated his leadership, being challenged by Rosario's Newell's Old Boys team, who also emerged as another strong candidate to win the title. Finally, after Banfield and Newell's victories against Club Atlético Tigre and Gimnasia de La Plata, respectively, the two rivals went on to the last game of the season with Banfield with a two-point lead over Newell's. On 13 December 2009, although Banfield was defeated by Boca Juniors 0–2, the club achieved the championship because Newell's Old Boys, its closest rival, was also defeated by San Lorenzo 2–0. These results allowed Club Atlético Banfield to win its first championship in the highest category of Argentine football. There, in Banfield, about 40,000 people received the brand-new champions, who finally made the Olympic turn before their public after having obtained the first title in their history. The fans of the Buenos Aires team eagerly awaited the arrival of the players, after the defeat suffered against Boca at the La Bombonera stadium. Beyond the fall, Banfield kept the title, and after having received the trophy in La Boca, the players and the coaching staff moved to their stadium. Around 10