Another historic negative record has been written, another loss as the visiting team, another poor performance by the same questionable players, and once again fans have gone home disappointed. What’s the good news? Coach, well now ex-Coach, Nestor Gorosito has abandoned the club. Sunday afternoon was crucial for River, on many aspects. Many questions were asked on and off the field, but no answers were given. River is currently the worst “big” team in Argentina.
Before the match with San Lorenzo in the ‘Nuevo Gasometro’, Nestor Gorosito had given word to the media that it would be his last match. He had declared this to the players after their daily meeting on a few days ago but nothing was secure. Matias Almeyda had commented on his intentions after the practice and red flags began to appear. On Friday, he announced to the public about his intentions. Many will be happy of his departure, but who will take his place? Apart from his departure,
San Lorenzo has become a real challenge for River. For the longest time, River cannot beat this team. To top it all off, Diego Simeone is their head coach. What are the odds that an ex-River coach or player beats River? Based on previous results, it would be very low odds. The match was controlled by River through out the whole match. River showcased something that wasn’t shown in a long time: determination. Much can be said about those questionable players that keep disgracing the jersey, but the players did play their best until two separate moments in the end of the second half.
Daniel Villalba put the Millonarios on top, scoring a penalty past San Lorenzo’s goalkeeper and it would be the only time River would be happy. As I mentioned before, River had the match won. Everything was beginning to look good and a victory was looming until the unexpected happened. Gustavo Cabral, River’s mediocre defenseman, decided to get into a brawl with San Lorenzo’s goalkeeper and was ejected form the match. This action awarded San Lorenzo a penalty shot which they eventually scored in the 39th minute. Three minutes later, San Lorenzo took the lead of a header by Bernardo Romeo and sealed River’s unfortunate fate. River had one last opportunity to tie the match, but Cristian Fabbiani decided to do a pathetic heel shot when he could have easily scored with a powerful shot.
Nothing seems to work for River, not the players, not the coach, nothing. It is going to be a long week for the Millonarios and once again, time will tell of the fate.
