Argentina's Boca Juniors reached the final of the 2007 Copa Libertadores de America last night, after a pulsating 3-0 win over Colombia's Cucuta Deportivo in their semi-final, second leg at the Estadio Bombonera in Buenos Aires.

Juan Roman Riquelme, Martin Palermo and Sebastian Battaglia got the all-important goals for the Argentinian side, who ran out 4-3 aggregate winners, having lost the away leg 3-1 to Cucuta last week.

Boca's victory means they will be contesting their fifth Copa final in seven seasons when they face Brazilian side Gremio in this month's decider. The Porto Alegre outfit booked their spot on Wednesday night after winning the all-Brazilian semi-final against Santos.

Boca, who went into last night's fixture needing to overturn a two-goal first leg deficit, took control of the game right from the off. Starting at a furious pace, they pressurised their Colombian visitors in every sector of the field, denying them the chance to control the tempo.

The Xeneizes came close to scoring after seven minutes, visiting keeper Robinson Zapata getting just enough on to a wicked shot by Riquelme to turn the ball on to the crossbar. Shortly after, Riquelme put a delightful ball into the centre of the area for Palacio to run on to, but the striker had his shot well saved by Zapata.

Despite their desire to take the game to their opponents, the Motilones were forced to cede terrain and defend deep as they waited for a chance to hit Boca on the break. Yet time and again, the efforts of Juan Maria Martinez and Lionel Pajoy, the man brought in to replace star striker Blas Perez, foundered on the defensive bulwark of the home side's Daniel Diaz and Paraguayan Claudio Morel Rodriguez.

Cucuta's only clear-cut opportunity fell to Ruben Bustos. Having scored from a free-kick in the first leg, the player came within centimetres of repeating the feat, only to see his effort cannon off the crossbar with Caranta stranded in the Boca goal. That scare aside, the home side showed a lot of composure as they went in search of their opener, although their final touch continued to desert them on occasion.

Hugo Ibarra came close to putting Boca ahead with a well-struck diagonal shot, before Riquelme finally made the breakthrough just before half-time with a superbly-flighted free-kick that flew in the top left-hand corner.

The bit between their teeth, Boca piled the pressure on their opponents in a frantic start to the second half. First Hugo Ibarra had Zapata at full stretch to keep out his long-range effort, then Martin Palermo narrowly missed with a superb header.

With Boca's second seemingly only a matter of time, the match had to be halted for six minutes as dense fog, that had earlier delayed kick-off and almost prevented the game taking place, descended once more. However, the locals kept the pressure on after the restart and got their reward when Palermo beat Julian Hurtado in the air to head home a Riquelme cross from the left.

Despite being ahead on away goals, the five-time Libertadores champions continued to press and create chances, such as the overhead kick from Palermo that Zapata somehow got a hand to, and an Ever Banega shot from outside the box that flew just over. In the dying minutes, Cucuta finally found a little respite as the intense efforts of their opponents began to take their toll.

However, the Xeneizes then took the aggregate lead with a third. Riquelme, once again the provider, swung over a corner and Battaglia, who found himself unmarked in the centre of the area, headed firmly home.

There was still time for one last piece of drama, with Boca almost letting the visitors in for a goal that would have sent the tie to penalties. With the 90 minutes almost up, Pajoy failed to convert after going one-on-one with Caranta. Cucuta coach Jorge Luis Bernal appealed in vain that his forward had been fouled, and earned himself a red card after coming on to the pitch to remonstrate.

With visibility fading fast, the final whistle went, sending Boca to another Copa Libertadores final. Their vast experience in this competition was clearly a factor in helping them overcome an obdurate Cucuta side, who, despite being the revelation of this year's competition, finally lost their way in the Buenos Aires fog.