Driussi’s replacement and two doubts, what Coudet must decide at River | OneFootball

After the tough defeat to Boca in the Superclásico, Chacho has Salas as his main option following the starting ‘9’s injury ahead of the clash with Aldosivi. In addition, there are two positions that today seem not to have a clear owner.

Among the most tangible consequences left by the painful defeat to Boca last Sunday, the most urgent is the need to replace the team’s best player in recent matches: Sebastián Driussi. The confirmed muscle tear suffered by the scorer forces Eduardo Coudet to look for a different alternative, since he does not have another forward with similar characteristics. He will also have to decide whether to keep faith with two players who have underperformed: Lautaro Rivero and Kendry Páez.

He sent Maximiliano Salas to warm up. A substitute since the coach’s arrival, he has qualities opposite to those the manager has sought, even for the center of the attack. With less ball control and less ability to combine, the former Racing player needs space to make the most of his power. Even so, he is currently the favorite to start this Saturday against Aldosivi.

The other option is Joaquín Freitas, a more versatile attacker but one whom Coudet sees as having more difficulty holding up play with his back to goal under the opponent’s pressure. The youngster who came through at Acassuso has power and speed, but he struggles to get into the box with real impact and to serve as a reference point to pin back opposing center-backs, something essential in Coudet’s systems. Further back in the pecking order is Agustín Ruberto, who would return to the squad list, though only to be among the substitutes.

Beyond this single forced change, the Superclásico exposed Lautaro Rivero’s poor level in defense and the lack of leadership in a team that watched the minutes slip through its fingers without even showing the slightest sign of rebellion. Because of this, the second center-back came under scrutiny for very specific mistakes that did not lead to opposition goals only because of Miguel Merentiel’s lack of precision, but were still part of a forgettable afternoon.

Although for now the 22-year-old defender would remain in the starting lineup, it would not be surprising if Germán Pezzella appeared for the trip to face Bragantino in Brazil. At 34 and just back from ligament surgery, the World Cup winner could be the leader the team is missing, and the coach believes that with continuity he could recover the level that once made him a regular with the Argentina national team.

The other question left by the loss to Boca was in attacking midfield. Kendry Páez started and mixed good and bad moments until he was replaced by Freitas himself 12 minutes into the second half. Since Chacho took over, that position had belonged to Ian Subiabre, who was on the bench Sunday for the first time under this coach. Having performed below par so far, the Comodoro Rivadavia native is now trailing in the race to be among the starting 11.

With these changes in mind, the team Coudet could field against Aldosivi would be: Santiago Beltrán; Gonzalo Montiel, Lucas Martínez Quarta, Lautaro Rivero, Marcos Acuña; Juan Cruz Meza, Aníbal Moreno, Tomás Galván, Kendry Páez or Ian Subiabre; Facundo Colidio and Maximiliano Salas.

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