Ruberto called up again for River, where he stands with Coudet | OneFootball

Sebastián Driussi’s injury leaves a hard-to-fill gap in River’s starting XI. Eduardo Coudet would turn to Maximiliano Salas, but at the same time he would give Agustín Ruberto the chance to return to the squad. The youngster hasn’t played a single minute since the coach arrived and was even left out of the matchday roster for the last five games, but he would be an option for Saturday’s clash against Aldosivi.

The 20-year-old youth player lost ground after Joaquín Freitas’ breakthrough, and his last appearance came in the win over Banfield, the day Marcelo Gallardo said goodbye. Chacho only had him on the bench against Sarmiento and Estudiantes de Río Cuarto, but never sent him on. After not featuring in last night’s reserve-team Superclásico, all signs point to him being among the substitutes again this weekend.

With an outstanding track record in the youth ranks and youth national teams, Ruberto had reached the first team with more than enough credentials to become one of the club’s top prospects. After some good performances and even a couple of goals, he lost his place and at the start of 2025 suffered a ligament tear at the South American U-20 Championship. Since returning from injury, he has not regained playing time.

So far, Coudet has relied more on the experience of Driussi, Salas and even Facundo Colidio, and his first option behind them is still Freitas. Except in the win over Racing, the Acassuso academy product has played in every match of this spell and was even in the starting lineup twice. He is currently winning the race to be the backup center forward.

Santiago Lencina is in a similar situation. The 20-year-old left-footer lost prominence at the start of 2026 under Gallardo, and since Chacho’s arrival he has not played a single minute. In fact, it was only against Boca that he returned to the matchday squad. This Saturday he would again be an option, but he is even behind Lautaro Pereyra, a youth player promoted by the current coaching staff.

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