Boca seek fresh start: Úbeda tries new tactics for first test | OneFootball

Change, everything changes. Boca's 2026 is projected with modifications in the team's composition and also with some tweaks in the style of play. Beyond the promising streak the team strung together at the end of the year -until the shock against Racing-, the coaching staff surprised in the first football practice before the friendly against Millonarios with a new scheme and the appearance of names that had not been starting.

After the day off, the matter to be decided between this Monday and Tuesday, in the training sessions before the match at La Bombonera on Wednesday -called the Miguel Ángel Russo Cup and to be played with xeneize fans-, is precisely whether the innovation tested last week in the starting eleven will be confirmed.

The most relevant news was the presence of Ander Herrera and Kevin Zenón as starters, in addition to the change in tactical formation: Claudio Úbeda broke away from the 4-4-2 used at the end of the Clausura and tried a well-defined 4-3-3. A single reference forward, wide-open wingers, and a midfield with a lot of association and dynamics.

It remains to be seen if that test is confirmed in the coming days and solidifies for the first (unofficial) match against Millonarios, or if it was just a trial and the double forward returns. Another important detail is that when the coach set up that formation, Edinson Cavani, Carlos Palacios, and Rodrigo Battaglia did not even participate in the substitute team due to various physical issues, so it is not ruled out that any of them could be considered for the friendly.

In any case, although the team will be confirmed in Monday's return to practice and the last training session on Tuesday, there is already a sketch of the new Boca that Úbeda is shaping: enhancing Herrera physically and giving him a key role, recovering the best version of Zenón (while Spain remains attentive to his situation), and starting to outline a different identity for the start of the year.

The Boca team that Úbeda tested in the first trial

Agustín Marchesín; Juan Barinaga, Lautaro Di Lollo, Ayrton Costa, Lautaro Blanco; Ander Herrera, Leandro Paredes, Milton Delgado; Kevin Zenón, Miguel Merentiel, and Exequiel Zeballos.

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