Racing vs River
Thanks to a 92nd-minute goal from Tomás Conechny, Racing Club pulled off a hard-fought win and defeated Newell’s Old Boys 1–0 away last Sunday. With that result, they climbed to third place in Group A with 25 points and to fifth in the aggregate table, securing a spot in the upcoming Copa Sudamericana. La Academia extended their unbeaten run to nine league matches (six wins and three draws). At home, they are five unbeaten in this competition, with three victories and two draws. Juan Nardoni and Santiago Sosa are making good progress in recovery of their respective injuries and are ready to return.
River Plate sealed their disappointment last Sunday, when — severely depleted — they earned a fortunate scoreless draw in their visit to Vélez Sarsfield. Marcelo Gallardo’s team finished sixth in Group B with 22 points after three winless matches (one draw and two losses), a skid that pushed them down to fourth place in the aggregate table. This means they will not play in the next Copa Libertadores unless they — or one of the top three — win the Clausura title. River won only one of their last five away matches in this competition (one draw and three defeats). Marcos Acuña, Lucas Martínez Quarta, and Kevin Castaño return after missing the previous match for different reasons. Gonzalo Montiel returns after injury and Facundo Colidio is still out.
River are in their worst form in a very long time and they could miss Copa Libertadores for the first time in many years if they don’t win the championship (or Boca, Lanus, Argentinos Jrs don’t win it). Racing are not in their best form but are definitely better than River. Midfielder Nardoni is finally back from injury and I expect them to take advantage of River’s awful momentum.