Arruabarrena returns to Boca: how did returning managers fare?

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La Número 12

·9 June 2026

Arruabarrena returns to Boca: how did returning managers fare?

Rodolfo Arruabarrena is preparing to write a new chapter on the Boca bench. His return raises an unavoidable question that the club’s recent history forces us to ask: What happens when a successful coach decides to come back?

A look at the numbers of the last great coaches who returned to the club from La Ribera shows that second (or third) spells were not always better. The coach will have to reverse that trend.

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El Vasco left a statistically high bar in his first spell, which lasted from August 2014 to February 2016. In 75 matches in charge, he achieved a remarkable 68.44% success rate, the result of 47 wins, 13 draws, and only 15 losses, while also adding two titles to the club’s trophy cabinet.

Arruabarrena will have his second spell at Boca.

However, his major unfinished business and the main area for improvement in this new stage at the Xeneize club will be to turn around his record in the clásicos: in his first spell he managed just 3 wins, 4 draws, and 8 defeats.

With his return now confirmed, it is inevitable to look back and analyze how the most recent managers who, like Arruabarrena, decided to return to the team from La Ribera fared. Among them is the most successful one in the club’s history.

Carlos Bianchi

Carlos Bianchi’s case is the most emblematic. His first spell (1998-2001) was the golden age par excellence, managing 189 matches with a 64.37% success rate and a flood of international and domestic titles.

Carlos Bianchi.

Surprisingly, his second spell (2003-2004) improved on his own numbers, reaching a 66.66% success rate in 88 matches and adding more trophies (including another Intercontinental Cup). He seemed unbeatable.

However, the third spell (2013-2014) showed that football is ruthless: in 72 matches his success rate plummeted to 45.83% (26 wins, 21 draws, 25 losses), and he left without adding any new stars, with a negative clásico record (3 won, 4 lost).

Alfio Basile

Alfio Basile’s story perfectly illustrates the risk of coming back. His first spell (2005-2006) was overwhelming. The team won, played well, and scored heavily. In just 55 matches, he achieved an astonishing 71.51% success rate and collected 5 titles, losing only 7 matches during his entire tenure.

Alfio Basile.

But his return in 2009 was brief and disappointing. He lasted only 21 matches, with a meager 44.44% success rate, without managing to become champion, and with the same number of defeats (7) as in his glorious first spell, but in less than half as many games.

Miguel Ángel Russo

The most recent case of multiple returns is Miguel Ángel Russo. In 2007, he led Boca to the Copa Libertadores title with a stellar Juan Román Riquelme, closing that spell with a 60.71% success rate in 56 matches.

Miguel Russo.

His second stint (2020-2021), now under Riquelme’s leadership as an executive, was statistically solid. In 59 matches he maintained a 57.62% success rate and won two domestic titles, proving he could validate his credentials again. However, his third spell was cut short by his unfortunate passing: he managed 13 matches and posted a low 41.02% success rate, earning just 3 wins and leaving without titles.

Arruabarrena’s challenge

History shows a clear trend: returns to the Xeneize bench are usually accompanied by statistical decline. Except for Bianchi’s second spell, all the coaches mentioned experienced a drop in their win percentage in later returns.

Rodolfo Arruabarrena takes over knowing he has the backing of a first spell with enviable overall numbers, but also with the historic pressure of a club that neither forgives nor lives off the past. El Vasco will have the difficult task of being the exception to the rule and proving that second spells really can be good.