Gallardo self-critical: "A negative, uncomfortable year for us" | OneFootball

In a press conference, Marcelo Gallardo lamented the elimination of River from the 2025 Clausura Tournament of the Professional League at the hands of Racing. At the same time, he emphasized his determination to continue as the head coach of the “Millonario” despite not meeting the season's objectives.

“It seems that today's match, by how it starts and ends, is a consequence of the last quarter for us, where it was very difficult to sustain ourselves as a team. Clearly disappointed by how we finished, it was not a year we could overcome. It is a completely negative and uncomfortable year for us,” Gallardo initially stated.

“It puts us in a very uncomfortable place, where we have to take responsibility. I take responsibility for this moment, for this year. I will take these days for reflection, review, to change... The year ends negatively, but in my mind, I will start thinking about how we continue, starting tomorrow,” he added.

In this context, he stated: “Surely I have failed, I am very self-critical with myself, my self-criticism is personal, internal, just like my review. I am not here to expose anyone, I have no insecurities. When things don't work out, I am responsible, just as I am responsible when they do.”

“I am aware of what I have diagnosed, I will surely discuss it with my team, with the relevant people. And from there, things will be defined. It is a bad year in my career as a coach, but I have also had good ones. I know myself, I know who I am, how I behave, and how I work, I am at peace with myself. I have surely made mistakes,” he emphasized.

“We will meet again in two days, I will communicate what needs to be communicated, and start working on it. We will surely return to work before the holidays. We haven't stopped all year, and in the last quarter, it has been hard to sustain ourselves. We need to decompress because our minds are too burdened. Next year, we must not fail. We have to rebuild a team that generates excitement and represents the team as it should,” he anticipated.

“When I spoke of uncomfortable moments, I also referred to not depending on ourselves to qualify for the Libertadores. We hope to restructure, refresh, and reestablish a solid structure that identifies us. We couldn't make the quality leap. I am convinced that it has been a terrible quarter, we haven't been able to step up and win important matches, as we have done in previous years. I know I still have a lot to give, if I didn't feel that way, I would be the first to raise my hand,” he expressed.

“When you fall, you have to get up starting tomorrow. I have had hard blows in life and here I am standing. When I decide that I don't have the energy to be in charge of a huge responsibility, I will be the first to say 'This is as far as I go'. On December 20, when we return to training, I will be here. I will also be here in the first days of the year,” he concluded.

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