Why Boca and Riestra are backing River in the Copa Argentina | OneFootball

River and Independiente Rivadavia will face each other this Friday at 22:15 in Córdoba for the Copa Argentina semifinal. The winner will meet Argentinos Juniors in the final, who defeated Belgrano 2-1 and is already waiting for an opponent. But beyond the sporting interest, there are other clubs paying attention to the outcome.

Boca and Deportivo Riestra, two of those fighting to enter next year's Copa Libertadores, would benefit if Marcelo Gallardo's team wins. If River defeats Lepra, both Xeneize and Malevo could benefit in the Annual Table that distributes the tickets to the top continental tournament.

Currently, Rosario Central leads the general standings with 59 points, followed by River with 52, Argentinos with 51, Riestra with 51, and Boca with 50. If the Núñez team remains in the direct qualification zone for the Copa and also wins the Copa Argentina, the spot reserved for the champion will be "freed" for the top three of the general table.

In that scenario, the federal tournament champion —already qualified— and the top three of the Annual will directly access the Libertadores. Thus, the third (currently Riestra) would go to the group stage and the fourth (Boca, with one less match against Barracas Central) would play the preliminary phase.

The truth is that if Boca (or Riestra, for instance) surpasses River in the annual table, whatever River does in the Copa Argentina would not affect them at all, as they would depend on themselves to get into the next major continental event. In the current scenario, however, River's advance to the final allows Xeneize greater opportunities to achieve the objective.

On the contrary, if Independiente Rivadavia eliminates River, for a spot to be freed, Argentinos Juniors would need to remain among the top three of the annual and become champions, thus freeing a spot for Boca and Riestra to stay in good standing. If the Mendoza team triumphs, the story will be different.

Additionally, the result on Friday will also impact the qualification for the Copa Sudamericana. If champions or teams already qualified through other means repeat, more spots will be freed up to the 13th position in the annual table. Therefore, at the Bombonera and Guillermo Laza, everyone will be cheering for River in this tournament.

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