Rivero in hot water: ‘God gives second chances’, leaving River? | OneFootball

After the defeat to Belgrano and temporarily deactivating his social media accounts due to the criticism he received, the defender shared a statement on Instagram.

Lautaro Rivero, one of the players singled out after River’s defeat to Belgrano in the Torneo Apertura final, deactivated his Instagram account after the match and hours later posted a story lamenting the result. The center back gave away the penalty from which Nicolás Fernández equalized and lost focus with Lucas Martínez Quarta on the goal in which Uvita turned the score around. With the Superclásico as a backdrop and a string of poor performances, many fans harshly criticized him, prompting the player to make this decision.

With 10 minutes left in the match and River leading 2-1, Rivero blocked with his left arm a chipped pass from Uvita Fernández to Ramiro Hernandes, who was making a run inside the box. At first, Yael Falcón Pérez ruled that it was not a punishable handball, but after being called by Leandro Rey Hilfer, he reviewed it on VAR and reversed his decision. The former Defensa y Justicia player converted it into a goal and made it 2-2. Then there was a communication breakdown between Martínez Quarta and Rivero — playing as center back and left back respectively at that point in the match — and the ball fell to Uvita himself, who scored with his left foot to make it 3-2 and give the title to the Pirata.

“I want to share with this story what I went through yesterday. I’m leaving angry because the hope was enormous and I know what this shirt means. But I promise you that my commitment is total and that I will keep giving the very best of myself to take River to the top. God always gives you another chance,” Rivero wrote 24 hours after the match.

Beyond the sporting blow, Rivero’s future at River will also be evaluated ahead of the next transfer window. The 22-year-old defender is under contract with River until December 2029 and has a 100 million USD release clause, but all of this will now be reviewed, especially with Nicolás Otamendi’s imminent arrival at La Banda.

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