Tiros Libres: Heroes For A Day
By: Christian |
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Diego Buonanotte
Photo courtesy La Página Millonaria
With the season mercifully drawing to a close, it’s difficult to find many positives to take away from this season. Things seem to have improved with the arrival of Ángel Cappa, but there was the same feeling from River fans last year when Leo Astrada took over as manager, and we all know how that worked out.
Still, two recent developments regarding two of the club’s brightest stars, one an emerging talent, the other a beloved legend, have given even the most disheartened River fan cause to smile.
Last Friday’s 2-1 win over Vélez Sársfield was a spirited victory, featuring one of the better, attacking performances from the squad this year. But it was the winning goal by Diego Buonanotte that most will remember. Less than a year after the deadly car accident that claimed three lives and jeopardized the player’s career, Buonanotte has made a remarkable recovery from his injuries, and has featured in the last two River games. His goal was so expertly taken that one could have mistakenly believed that el Enano hadn’t been in rehab the last five months. The sight of Diego’s teammates surrounding him to celebrate his goal was one of the most emotional sights this year.
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I’ve criticized Ariel Ortega many times on this site, less for his playing ability and more for his attitude off the pitch. El Burrito has missed several practice sessions due to his ongoing alcoholism, and has engaged in unnecessary battles with the club’s board of directors and managers. Yet despite all this, it’s hard to deny Ortega’s skill when he’s on, and the past few games he has played with a renewed intensity.
His reward has been a shock call-up to Diego Maradona’s squad for tonight’s Argentina vs. Haiti friendly in Buenos Aires. As this is not a FIFA-sanctioned date, only players from the Primera will make up the squad, but Ortega’s inclusion after so many years is truly a remarkable comeback for the player. The game may only be against Haiti and it’s highly unlikely that Maradona will keep Ortega in mind for the World Cup, but his appearance tonight will no doubt be a huge source of pride to the millions of River faithful who still adore him.
Highlights: River Plate 2 – 1 Vélez Sársfield
Category: Team News
River Plate Looks For Second Consecutive Win Under Ángel Cappa
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When Daniel Passarella announced that he would be hiring ex-Huracán manager Ángel Cappa to replace Leo Astrada and NOT Ramón Díaz, a River legend who had publicly voiced his desire to return to the club where in won 7 titles between 1996 and 2002, many fans reacted with disappointment, a few with outrage.
After last Sunday’s 2-1 win over Godoy Cruz, River fans are hopeful they are being proven wrong.
Cappa’s first game in charge could not have gone better. The victory ended a 5-game winless streak and more than 500 minutes without scoring a goal. River managed to come back from a goal down to a very good Godoy Cruz side, thanks to goals from Ariel Ortega and Paulo Ferrari, the latter who remains our leading scorer this season. And most importantly, the game saw the return of Diego Buonanotte after that terrible car accident last winter that took the lives of three of his friends. He came on as a second half substitute.
It was one of the best performances from River in some time, but of course it is far too soon to call the hiring of Cappa a complete success. The arrival of a new coach to a team mid-season almost always sees an improvement from the squad, as players seek to impress their new manager. River’s remaining fixtures against Estudiantes, Vélez, Racing, and Tigre will not be easy, so it remains to be seen if the squad can continue their form from Sunday, and if Cappa can keep his players focused on their quest to avoid possible relegation next season.
Still, fans are warming to Ángel Cappa and they are ready to stand behind him.
Category: 2010 ClausuraLeo Astrada OUT as Manager After 0-0 Draw to Atlético Tucumán
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When he took charge of River Plate after the disastrous campaign of Néstor Gorosito, Leo Astrada appeared to be the perfect answer to resurrect a lifeless team back into a contender. The most decorated player in the club’s history and with a league title under his belt during a previous spell as manager, the hiring of El Negro was greeted with optimism.
It did not take long for that optimism to sour.
Last night’s 0-0 draw with soon-to-be relegated Atlético Tucumán was the last straw for River President Daniel Passarella. Astrada’s departure was announced early this morning, with plans to replace him already underway.
Clausura 2010: Boca Juniors 2 – 0 River Plate
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River Plate painfully, pathetically, disgracefully lost 2-0 yesterday afternoon to Boca Juniors in the Superclásico. The 80-minute game, rescheduled after Sunday’s match was postponed after 10 minutes due to rain, should have been an opportunity for River to earn a major and long overdue victory at the Bombonera that would have further punished a Boca side near the cellar of the Clausura, and just as importantly, gained three precious points in their quest to avoid a relegation dogfight next season.
Instead, the only team River punished was themselves.
After the opening minutes saw both sides play very cautiously, Boca slowly began to gain confidence and take advantage of a slow and uninspired River. Oscar Ahumada, practically a fan favorite at the Bombonera after he controversially criticized River fans in 2008 for their “appalling silence” following the club’s elimination in the Copa Libertadores and suggesting that Boca fans would have kept cheering, endeared himself more to the xeneize faithful when his foul on Matías Giménez set up a free kick that led to Boca’s first goal. Juan Román Riquelme stepped up to take the free kick, but rather than take a direct shot on goal, which the defense seemed to be expecting, he instead shot low and found Gary Medel who slipped it past Daniel Vega. The River keeper has been our best player this season, but he completely blew it on the goal (replays did show a slight offside, which was not called). If you watch the video below, you can see how Vega is just standing there waiting for the ball to roll to him, which gave Medel just enough time to score.
Suspended Superclásico to Resume Tomorrow
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Last Sunday’s washed-out match between Boca and River Plate will resume tomorrow, Thursday afternoon at the Bombonera. Those of you in the States can watch it live on Fox Sports Español at 2:30PM ET/11:30AM PT, but please check back to the River Plate Offside for streaming video.
Superclásico Postponed Due to Rain
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Inclement weather has forced the match between Boca and River at the Bombonera to be suspended after only 10 minutes. With rain pouring down and with no letup in sight, the referee wisely chose to call off the match. Some fans are waiting in the stadium in the hope that the game will be played, but with the rain still coming down hard, that seems unlikely.
Disappointing to not see the game, but there was really no way this game was going to be played under such conditions.
Watch Superclásico Live!
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Clausura 2010
Fixture 10: Boca Juniors v River Plate
Watch live video from brujita_deprimera32 on Justin.tv
Superclásico 2010: La Previa
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This Sunday marks another edition of the Superclásico, the most important fixture in the Primera and one of the most famous in world football. Even more so than that other famous clásico also taking place this Sunday across the Atlantic between Manchester United and Liverpool, this rivalry will produce one of the greatest spectacles one is ever likely to see in any sport. Unfortunately, unlike that European matchup, Sunday’s game will be different in one important way – aside from pride, there will be nothing to play for.
Both River Plate and Boca are in the middle of a terrible 2010. Neither team is playing the in Copa Libertadores, both are far from qualifying for the second-rate Copa Sudamericana, River are flirting with relegation and Boca are only three points from the bottom of the league. None of that will matter for fans during the 90 minutes this Sunday, but it is another sad reminder of the state of River and of football in general in Argentina.
With that said, there is still pride at stake here, and a win over los bosteros would easily salvage something from this otherwise forgettable season. Here’s a quick preview.
Clausura 2010: River Plate 2 – 0 Huracán
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Luck may played an important part in River Plate’s 2-0 victory over Huracán at the Monumental on Sunday, but la banda will take any help they can get ahead of the all-important Superclásico this coming weekend.
For a team that is struggling to score, River were handed a gift in the 2nd minute when Huracán keeper Gastón Monzón fumbled a loose ball in front of his net which led to an own goal by defender Ezequiel Filippetto. Los millonarios received an even better gift later in the first half when a Huracán goal was disallowed for being offside, though replays showed it should have stood.
There was no luck needed however in the second half, when an perfectly times cross from Juan M. Díaz found Gustavo Canales, who headed the ball into the net, securing an important victory for River in their quest to avoid relegation next season, and boosting their confidence ahead of their visit to La Bombonera next Sunday.
River will most certainly need the momentum going into the Superclásico. Sunday’s result was only their third win in 9 games, and only the second time this season they have scored more than one goal, and one of those only came as an own goal. River have failed to win two matches in a row, so they will need their players to perform at their best if they are to win against Boca. A little luck wouldn’t hurt either.
Highlights:
Clausura 2010: Independiente 2 – 0 River Plate
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Poor defensive mistakes proved costly for River Plate in a 2-0 loss to Independiente Sunday evening. Despite outplaying their rivals in the first half, sloppy defending allowed los rojos to take the lead in the 38th minute, a lead River never threatened to challenge. Independiente would strike again in the 60th minute to finish River off for good.
After (barely) defeating San Lorenzo three days earlier, River come into Sunday’s match with renewed confidence, and a strong first half seemed to suggest that River would be able to hold off an Independiente side looking for a win to send them to the top of the table.
But shocking defending left Darío Gandín unmarked in front of River keeper Daniel Vega, who had no chance to stop his shot on goal. It was an unfair result given Independiente’s poor first half, but bad defending from River could only lead to disaster. Look at the video of the second goal below in the 60th minute to see just how much room Independiente were given.
Offensively, River had nothing going all night, and Leo Astrada’s decision to use Mauro Díaz as the enganche proved useless. Neither Rogelio Funes Mori, Gustavo Canales, or second half sub Daniel Villalva were able to generate anything, and bringing on Marcelo Gallardo to replace Díaz was not enough.
But the worst was Matías Abelairas, who is on his way to becoming public enemy number 1. The winger has been criticized by many fans this season, and on Sunday he gave them more reason to question his inclusion in the squad. El Pitu had two opportunities to score and botched both, denying River a chance to get back in the game. He is hardly the only squad member to blame for this disastrous season, but missing two sitters like that is bound to single anyone out.
Can it really be that the rest of the season will go on this way, disappointment week after week? Will there be anything else to talk about, other than River’s impending date with relegation? Well, in two weeks time, we shall pay a visit to Boca for another edition of the Superclásico. With both teams having nothing else to play, you can expect both sides to use this opportunity to salvage some pride for the season. Can River rise about their current slump and find the form that lead them to that wonderful, 3-1 win in the summer?
River Gifting Goals to Independiente:
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