Driussi and the injury curse since his return to River | OneFootball

Since his arrival at the start of 2025, every time the forward has hit a good run of form, the team’s performances have clearly improved. His absences through injury usually lead to an overall drop-off. What options does Coudet have to mask this shortcoming?

Since Eduardo Coudet took over as coach, River have put together a string of good results that was only interrupted by the painful Superclásico defeat against Boca. But even in that match, there was one recurring detail that has been evident since the start of 2025: the team lost sharpness after Sebastián Driussi went off injured.

In that same game, El Millonario had started better and, although they still were not threatening Leandro Brey’s goal, they clearly controlled their rival and were able to link up through the middle, something the No. 9 does far better than anyone else competing for his spot. Maximiliano Salas came on in his place and the game changed radically. Against Aldosivi, the former Racing player started again, and play through the middle was once again nowhere to be seen. Clearly, there is a pattern that keeps repeating itself.

Beyond his goals (he scored five in eight matches under Chacho), Driussi gives the team the chance to find passes between the lines and to put the midfielders facing the opposition goal. It may seem like a minor detail, but when that connection does not flow, the play gets funneled out wide and everything becomes more predictable. It happened against Boca, but also at the start of the year under Marcelo Gallardo and even throughout 2025.

Going backward chronologically, at the start of this season, when the Muñeco seemed to be getting River back on track, the Gordo got injured in Rosario and left the field at halftime in the draw against Central. Not coincidentally, after a very good first half, the team’s performance in the second was very poor, and El Millonario held on to the 0-0 thanks to Santiago Beltrán. The following matches, already without him on the field, ended in defeats against Tigre and Argentinos, and his rushed return against Vélez did not change the equation. Conclusion: Gallardo’s spell came to an end.

Driussi’s previous injuries that shaped Gallardo’s spell

Earlier on, Driussi had been injured in the first leg against Palmeiras (everyone knows how that ended), but that defeat was only the beginning of the team’s final decline in 2025. With no natural replacement, Gallardo was left without his key man and the team went on a run of eight defeats in 10 matches; and although he returned during that stretch, he never managed to get back into rhythm.

To a lesser extent, the other occasion when his absence coincided with a dip in form was at the Club World Cup. After scoring against Urawa Red Diamonds in the opener, he suffered a serious ankle sprain and the team bowed out of the competition playing poorly and failing to score in the two remaining matches.

With no other player of his profile in the squad, Driussi’s highs and lows match those of the team. Every time he hit a good run of form, the results came and the performances improved, but with each of his injuries, the team feels his absence and cannot find a way to replace his goalscoring and link-up ability.

Coudet’s options to mask Driussi’s absence

At a decisive stage of the semester, Chacho has so far opted for Salas. The left-footer has some qualities that are the opposite of Driussi’s and finds it harder to play through the middle. He needs space and to go one-on-one against opposition center-backs. That is why, among other things, against Aldosivi the team had to rely on Gonzalo Montiel’s forward runs, Marcos Acuña’s distribution, and Ian Subiabre’s occasional flashes of flair.

The other alternative is Joaquín Freitas. The youngster who came through at Acassuso struggles more to hold off center-backs with his back to goal, but he knows how to lay the ball off and can link up more naturally than the former Racing man. At just 19, he is currently a step below his competitor, but if performances like last Saturday’s are repeated (he provided the assist for the third goal), everything could change.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.