With pressure to keep a Copa Santander Libertadores dream alive, River faces Uruguayan club Nacional in the fourth match of the group stage. River needed a win to maintain a positive outlook on classifying for the next round while Nacional came to Buenos Aires in search of maintaining the first spot. Playing at home, at such a crucial moment, should have been a major factor in acquiring many fans to attend the game. I was disappointed to see that not many fans went to watch the Millonarios and silence could be heard through out the game. To top it off, Nacional had a multitude of fans travel from Montevideo and create a lot of noise for their team. Could it have been a sign of anger or a clear negative message for River’s poor performance? Well, as the game evolved, I understood their actions.
One of the things I looked forward to was seeing Cristian Fabbiani play on the field. Through out the week, he has had a war of words against Nacional, especially their coach. Fabbiani stated “We will walk all over them” and “Nacional does not have a team to play in this tournament.” With these heated words, River needed to demonstrate that they were the top team and that, indeed, River would win. Unfortunately, River suffered another poor effort on the pitch. Nothing seemed to work for the Millonarios, not the passing, defending, or shots on goal. At one point during the first half, Radamel Falcao and Cristian Fabbiani had their shots blocked or hit the posts in a span of ten seconds. This luck, or lack of, has followed River in the past few matches. The ball does not simply want to go in and River is paying a high price for it. River’s midfield was totally blank, causing Nacional to slowly make their up the field and surprise goalkeeper Mariano Barbosa. The first half of the match ended with a 0-0 score, a score that nobody expected.
The second forty-five minutes of the match was equally stressful. Nothing was being produced on the field that would convince me that River would score. Although some chances were there, not one play was convincing. Nacional did an excellent job of stopping almost every attack and they completely erased any doubts as to who the better team was on the pitch. It hurts me to give the opposing club more credit than River but the reality is that there is very little to give credit too. Some have stated that “Radamel Falcao + 10” is reality of the club as he has played his heart out in every match and has not complained. Others state that this River is the worst in history, a statement that could be true. My love for the club encourages me to think otherwise and keep on supporting my favorite team but I need goals, and wins. The match resulted in a tie which benefited Nacional but complicated River’s chances of advancing to the next round. I believe that River will advance and will make it far as long as the effort, motivation, love of the jersey, and love of the club is there. The future looks dim, but so does many other things.
