Driussi’s replacement and two doubts, Coudet’s calls at River | OneFootball

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

As soon as River’s No. 9 signaled to the bench, before the 15-minute mark of the first half in the Superclásico, Chacho sent Maximiliano Salas to warm up. A substitute since the coach’s arrival, he has qualities opposite to those Coudet had been looking for even in the center-forward role. 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 alternative is Joaquín Freitas, a more versatile attacker but one Coudet believes has greater difficulty holding up the ball with his back to goal under opposing pressure. The youngster who came through at Acassuso has power and speed, but struggles to make a real impact in the box and to serve as a reference point to pin back opposing center-backs, something essential in Coudet’s setups. Further back in the pecking order is Agustín Ruberto, who would return to the squad list, but only to be among the substitutes.

Beyond this lone 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 showing even the slightest sign of fight. In light 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 poor finishing, but were still part of a forgettable afternoon.

Although the 22-year-old defender would remain a starter for now, it would not be surprising if Germán Pezzella appeared for the visit to 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 for the Argentina national team.

The other doubt 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 on Sunday for the first time under this coach. After underwhelming so far, the Comodoro Rivadavia native is now trailing in the race to be in the starting eleven.

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.