Questions Gallardo must answer as River return to training | OneFootball

After two days of rest, the Millonario returns to training ahead of the clash with Sarmiento, facing six absences due to international call-ups, plus additional absences due to injury and suspension. Gallardo will have to piece together a puzzle with the obligation to win.

The defeat against Rosario Central in Arroyito left River with less room to maneuver. The Millonario is now third in the annual standings and on Sunday will host Sarmiento, forced to return to victory in order to remain in the Copa Libertadores qualification spots. The squad returns to training after two days off and Marcelo Gallardo is preparing to piece together a puzzle for which he still doesn’t know what pieces he’ll have available.

The certainties for the Muñeco are that he will not have the six players called up to the South American national teams (Gonzalo Montiel, Lautaro Rivero, Marcos Acuña, Kevin Castaño, Juan Fernando Quintero, and Matías Galarza), nor one of the two suspended players: Juan Carlos Portillo, who was sent off in Rosario last Sunday.

The other suspended player is Maximiliano Salas, and after the appeal to the Disciplinary Tribunal, there is a lot of optimism regarding the possibility that his suspension will be reduced to just one match, which he already served last weekend. And although they believe the outcome will be as expected, in Núñez they must wait for the decision, which will come this Thursday.

In addition to those called up and suspended, there are also doubts regarding the injured players. Enzo Pérez, who suffered a deep cut above his knee in the defeat against Palmeiras, and Sebastián Driussi, who tore a muscle in the first leg against the Brazilians, are the two most likely to return.

The others who will be evaluated from now until Saturday are Maximiliano Meza and Gonzalo Martínez. The former Gimnasia, Independiente, and Monterrey player is coming off surgery for tendinitis in the patellar tendon of his left knee and is in the final stage of his recovery, after more than three months of inactivity. Pity, meanwhile, suffered a new muscle injury and they hope to see him at 100% before bringing him back into the squad.

Given these circumstances, the Muñeco will likely turn to a starting eleven that has never played together before, with changes across all lines. Of course, the scenario will be different if Salas and Driussi are ultimately available, as this would give the coach the chance to have all his forwards (except Ian Subiabre, who is at the U-20 World Cup).

A probable starting lineup to face Sarmiento would be: Franco Armani; Fabricio Bustos, Lucas Martínez Quarta, Paulo Díaz, Milton Casco; Giuliano Galoppo, Enzo Pérez or Agustín de la Cuesta, Santiago Lencina; Ignacio Fernández; Facundo Colidio and .

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