Aníbal Moreno, the midfielder Gallardo dreams of but River can't get | OneFootball

With the curtain falling on a football year to forget, River has kicked off the transfer market with an eye on rebuilding the squad for 2026. Marcelo Gallardo has already started the clean-up with the departure of the six players whose contracts end in December, and now he has taken another step: the “Reinforcements Operation.” The list of candidates has already come to light and hides a name that keeps the coach up at night, but is impossible for the Millonario’s finances: Aníbal Moreno.

The name comes as no surprise, precisely because Muñeco has always longed to add him to his ranks and even strongly urged the board to negotiate for him at the end of 2024. Back then, after some back and forth, the story turned into a utopian signing due to Palmeiras’ high demands.

And now? Although he lost ground at Verdao under Abel Ferreira and didn’t play a single minute in the Copa Libertadores final against Flamengo, his situation hasn’t changed. In that sense, even though Gallardo sees him as the ideal number 5 for this new River side he envisions, needing a drastic change, they haven’t even managed to sit down and talk with those in charge of football at the Brazilian giant.

The explanation behind the failed negotiations and the “impossible” label has to do with the fact that Palmeiras would only let Moreno go—recently called up by Lionel Scaloni for the October FIFA date—for a full sale of his rights, which, according to Transfermarkt, is valued at 11 million dollars.

And if that figure is already extremely high, on top of that is the new negotiation policy of the Núñez club, now in the hands of Stefano Di Carlo: not making extravagant outlays for the full rights of a player, but rather negotiating a percentage with an option or obligation to buy, or at most a loan—conditions that Verdao does not accept.

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