Arruabarrena assessed Boca’s win over Racing | OneFootball

After the epic 3-2 victory over Racing in the quarterfinals of the 2026 Copa Argentina, Rodolfo Arruabarrena analyzed his team’s performance in a press conference. The Boca coach praised his side’s composure to overturn an adverse situation, highlighted Enner Valencia’s hat-trick, and explained the tactical changes that allowed them to seal a place in the semifinals of the national tournament.

On a night full of tension and emotion in the Copa Argentina, the blue and gold club delivered an unforgettable display of character to book its place among the tournament’s final four. After falling two goals behind, the team led by Vasco Arruabarrena reacted in time and ended up winning 3-2 in the final moments against La Academia.

The victory not only represents a crucial emotional boost for the Xeneize dressing room, but also confirms the work the team has been doing at a decisive stage of the season. With a superb second-half display and a risky but effective approach, Boca showed the quality needed to take control of the game.

Vasco Arruabarrena won it with his substitutions. Photo: Luciano Bisbal/Getty Images.

With the semifinal spot secured, the coach sat down in front of the media to break down what had happened on the field. Calm after the win but without losing his self-critical edge, the manager stressed the importance of the halftime talk and the team’s collective reading of the match to turn the story around in a memorable clásico.

When reviewing how the comeback took shape, the coach focused on the adjustments made in the dressing room while the scoreline was against them. "The halftime talk was about not losing our heads, looking to attack down the flanks, and trying not to commit silly fouls that could give them chances in the air, since they had more height than us," he began.

"After the first goal I could see the team was pushing, the crowd carries you along, and Racing seemed to try to protect that 2-1 lead, which gave us a little more space, especially out wide. But we had to be careful on the counterattacks and with the spaces we could leave open while attacking. There’s also a bit of luck, a bit of bravery, and I congratulate my players for that ability to keep pushing. We’ll keep working to improve certain things we believe we need to improve," he said.

Likewise, the dramatic finish sparked the emotion typical of a decisive knockout clash. On that point, the head coach emphasized the importance of the victory: "It’s a match won in the last minute. It has all the emotion any game has, even more so a clásico, even more so a quarterfinal, and with the chance to take us into a Copa Argentina semifinal, which is important for us. That’s what it is: the emotion of coming back from an adverse result against an opponent that knows what it wants, that has its ideas, and that caused us problems at times while it was two goals ahead."

Valencia’s hat-trick and the value of the substitutes

One of the standout names of the day was undoubtedly the Ecuadorian forward, the undisputed star of the match with his three goals. Referring to his performance and the dressing-room gesture, the coach said: "As for Enner, just congratulations. I think Leo Paredes gave him the award, fully deserved. He’s a kid who makes himself very well liked, and the three goals will do him and everyone a lot of good. Palacios came on well, Sebastián came on well, everyone came on well. Making changes is complicated because it’s a match that’s already at a high tempo, and having alternatives on the bench makes it much easier for the coach to make decisions."

Rodolfo Arruabarrena’s press conference.

Going deeper into the footballing side of things and the ways they managed to break down the opposing defense, he praised the team’s search down the wings and the combinations between his wide players. "I think the first goal comes from that, from persistence, from trying to come back from a losing position. For the other two goals there was already an idea: we had two targets in the box, we had the overlap out wide with Lozano - Flores or Lozano - Palacio, and Blanco with Villa on the other side. Luckily we were effective with the crosses and found Enner’s head, and he was able to score all three goals," he analyzed.

The tactical risk and the demanding schedule

To pin the game back into Racing’s half, the coaching staff had to make bold decisions in midfield, at times upsetting the usual defensive balance in favor of a devastating attack. "There was the risk of splitting the team into a 4-2-4 and losing the midfield, but with some movement we tried to make up for it. It’s true that Racing dropped a little deeper, so we were picking up the second balls, moving it wide again, and trying to create space from one side to the other so we could cross and look for our two targets," he explained.

Along the same lines, Arruabarrena added: "I always say the same thing: the ones who play are the players, the ones who come in are the players, and if they don’t come in convinced, it’s very hard to come back or put in a good performance. It’s been a while now that I look at the bench and know I have what I need to change a game, and we’ll try to keep going down that path. Now I’m going to give them a day off, and on Tuesday we’ll get back to work so that on Friday we can be ready at home; we need the three league points."

Boca’s celebration after the win over Racing. Photo: Gerónimo Marino/La Número 12.

In addition, the blue and gold club’s strategist highlighted the squad’s attitude and the composure needed to face the competition. "They’re training well, they’re training with joy, I see them and it’s a good group. These are just results and we haven’t achieved anything; you’ll hear me say that many times. There’s still a long way to go, now we’ve added one more match, it’s a month packed with games, and we have to take it step by step and try to keep showing up. Obviously, at some point we might not perform the way we need to at that moment, but desire and hunger are what we’re going after," he said.

Arruabarrena’s thanks

To close out his time with the press, the coach dedicated some emotional words to the fans, acknowledging their constant support from the stands throughout the ninety minutes. "To the fans, all I can do is thank them, just as I thanked the players as a fan myself. Keep backing us, because these boys are going to try to give everything to achieve something," he concluded firmly.

Boca fans at the Gigante de Arroyito. Photo: Gerónimo Marino/La Número 12.

With a semifinal ticket secured and morale at its highest, Boca will return to training on Tuesday with next Friday’s home match against Unión in mind. Vasco Arruabarrena himself said he would give the players the day off so they can rest and regroup the day after tomorrow to prepare for the game at La Bombonera.

Keep reading:

Boca’s player ratings from the comeback win over Racing in the Copa Argentina

When Boca will play again after eliminating Racing from the Copa Argentina

Who Boca’s opponent will be in the Copa Argentina semifinal

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