Venezuela

Venezuela. Simple league championship – a refreshing formula in South America – and dramatic battle for the title between 3 teams. From the Second Division Valencia and Anzoategui were promoted.
First Division.
Deportivo Galicia had very weak season, finished last with 14 points and was relegated.
Internacional lost the battle for survival – 15th with 21 points and relegated.
Union Deportiva survived – 14th with 22 points.
Estudiantes – 13th with 24 points.
Maracaibo – 12th with 24 points.
Trujillanos – 11th with 26 points.
Portuguesa – 10th with 28 points.
Deportivo Italia – 9th with 28 points.
Zamora – 8th with 28 points.
Mineros – 7th with 32 points.
Pepeganga Margarita – 6th with 33 points.
Pepeganga Margarita deserves one more picture, because this was their last season of existence – the club popped up just recently in the top league and did very well, but… different name and different city appeared in the next season.
Caracas FC – 5th with 36 points.
Universidad de Los Andes – 4th with 36 points.
Minerven, Maritimo and Deportivo Tachira were entangled in the battle for the title and at the end not only 1 point separated first from third, but the regular championship ended undecided.
Minerven finished 3rd with 42 points.
The other 2 teams had 43 points each after the 30 rounds of the championship. Maritimo was 2nd because of 2-goal worse goal-difference. The best Venezuelan team in the recent years, Deportivo Tachira, finished 1st. Minerven played collected and careful football – they lost only twice and permitted just 18 goals in their own net. Deportivo Tachira preferred attacking football and finished slightly better than Maritimo thanks to that: 17 wins and 59 goals scored. Only Minerven won more games than them – 18. Defense was secondary for Tachira and they allowed the ball to end in their net 32 times. Yet, they were number 1 in the final table… but got no title. Since goal-difference counted only to make the table comprehensive, in case of teams finishing with equal points a final play-off followed. In it Maritimo got the upper hand, winning 2-0.
Thus, Deportivo Tachira won the regular season, but lost the title.
Maritimo won the title – it was their 3rd. A great season. 15 wins, 13 ties, and only 2 losses in the regular season, 43-18 goal-difference. And after that they won the championship play-off, cool and collected.
Once again, the Venezuelan champions for 1989-90. No famous players here – outside Venezuelan context, of course – but champions. This was the strongest period of the club, which was not finished yet.