After leading River to its first title in nearly 4 years in his first season in charge, Simeone has seen his squad crash this year to the bottom of the Primera table with a 1-6-6 record, the worst start ever in River’s history. After a defeat in the Superclasico, the rumors began to swirld that el Cholo’s days at River were numbered, and only a Copa Sudamericana title could rescue his job. But after River blew their early 2-0 lead last night that would have seen them through to the next round, Simeone, who was tossed out after arguing calls in the second half after Chivas had tied the game 2-2 and thereby eliminating River, it was only a matter of time before today’s news.

It’s is an acrimonious end for Simeone and the club, who, after the disappointing reign of Daniel Passarella, was appointed with the task of turning the club’s fortunes around. After a successful stint at Estudiantes, which included a league title, Simeone was seen as a fresh face, a young and fiery coach who would bring his enthusiasm and experience from his days on the national team to Argentina’s most successful club.

But there were several missteps from the start. Simeone struggled to find his best starting XI for much of the first season, constantly changing his tactics week after week and failing to establish any sort of consistency. He failed to beat Boca both times in the league, and the 2-2 draw at home against a 9-man San Lorenzo in the Copa Libertadores remains one of the most embarrassing moments in River history.

Behind the scenes, Simeone struggled to take on a role as a leader of the clubhouse. He failed to reign in players like Juan Pablo Carrizo and Oscar Ahumada, whose post-Libertadores comments infuriated the River fan-base. He had a long standing and bitter feud with Ariel Ortega, a River legend, and his decision to leave him on the bench brought the wrath of fans who were furious to see their captain so disrespected. When it appeared that President Jose Aguilar went behind Simeone’s back and extended Ortega’s contract with the club, his role as coach was severely undermined. Though Ortega would ultimately leave, Simeone was left as the scapegoat, his authority challenged.

This season proved to be disastrous almost right from the start. Without a true team captain, his reinforcements failing on the pitch, River’s title hope was over in a matter of weeks, and Simeone’s tenure was hanging by a thread. Last night was just the final straw.

Though it was the necessary change, (being known as the coach of the worst River team ever is not going to keep you around long), it is still a sad end to what at the time was perceived as a new start for River, a new era of championship glory for la gloriosa banda. Diego may have deserved better, and he may not be as bad as his record shows, but there was really no other choice to be made.

Glad to see Simeone out? Think it came too late? And who do you want to see take over? With nothing left to play for, there will be plenty of time to hash out these questions n the coming months.

River Plate were eliminated from the Copa Sudamericana this evening after a 2-2 draw with Chivas de Guadalajara in Mexico left them down 4-3 on aggregate over the two leg series. Despite a thrilling match that saw a flurry of action, River were unable to hold on to their early lead that had they held, would have assured them a spot in the semifinals. Instead, River are out, and Diego Simeone’s future as head coach is in jeopardy amid rumors that he may soon step down.

River needed to come out early to erase the 2-1 deficit from the first leg in Buenos Aires, and the team responded by going up 2-0 in the first half thanks to goals from Cabral and Falcao. The team looked inspired and took advantage of a nervous Chivas side completely caught off guard. River dominated possession, controlled the pace of the game, and continued to push forward even though the 2-0 result was enough to see them through to the next round.

But an absolute howler from Abreu, who should have scored early in the second half, would come to haunt River. Similar to last year’s Copa Libertadores match against San Lorenzo, when River also lost 2-1 in the first leg, only to watch their 2-0 lead in the second leg erased in the span of 3 minutes, River would again concede two goals, this time in a span of 5 minutes, to seal their fate and end their chances of survival.

River would continue to press on, and the final 15 minutes of the game were some of the most intense I’ve seen yet, as los millonarios would continue to attack, but each time coming up short. Substitute Gustavo Bou would have the best chance, but his shot only a few feet from the keeper instead went hurling up into the stands.

River deserved better. They came for the win, had it in their hands, but let it slip away. They played intensely and with passion, but in the end, it was too little, too late. And so now, finally, River are truly done with the year. There will be no trophies, no celebrations, nothing. As for Diego Simeone, who was appropriately ejected from the game, he may have coached his last game with River (though the press is suggesting he may stick around for this Sunday’s match.)

Look for more on tonight’s game tomorrow when the disappointment will hopefully wear off.

Unbelievable.

2008 Copa Sudamericana, Quarterfinal – Game 2
Chivas de Guadalajara 2 – 2 River Plate

Scoring Summary:
Gustavo Cabral (RP), 2nd
Radamel Falcao (RP), 20th
Marco Fabián (CdG), 59th
Alberto Medina (CdG), 64th

River Plate:
Juan Marcelo Ojeda
Paulo Ferrari, Gustavo Cabral, Facundo Quiroga, Cristian Villagra
Augusto Fernández, Oscar Ahumada, Matías Abelairas, Diego Buonanotte
Radamel Falcao, Sebastián Abreu

Substitutions:
Gustavo Bou for Buonanotte, 61st
Rodrigo Archubi for Ferrari, 76th
Mauro Rosales for Fernández, 82th

You’ll remember that in the first leg, River were lucky to come away with a 2-1 loss to a disciplined Chivas side at home, and will now need a 2-0 victory in Guadalajara to advance to the semifinals. It will prove to be an enormous task. Coming back from conceding two away goals is difficult enough, but this River, which has leaked goals behind a tepid defense, will have an even bigger mountain to climb.

After a pathetic campaign in the Apertura and an embarrassing defeat in the Superclasico, River’s year will come down to tonight. If they can pull off a miracle, they can salvage some dignity, and push ever closer towards their first Sudamericana title. If they bomb, Simeone will likely resign, and fans will have to suffer through the next two months of football with nothing to play for.

For River to have a legitimate chance, they MUST come out early and score. Chivas knows that a desperate team will arrive to the Estadio Jalisco tonight, and with one foot in the door to the next round, look for them to take the same approach they took in Buenos Aires – stay calm and focused, defend against River’s offense, and look to strike on the counter attack. Should Chivas score first, I don’t see this River being capable enough to climb out of that hole.

I hope the players understand that this is la gloriosa, and that requires leaving it all out on the pitch. It will take more than this miserable year to undo my support for River, but I always demand the best from this squad. My faith has been bruised as of late, but I support the shirt just the same, and I’m always hopeful. Let’s see if that hope carries us away from Mexico with a spot in the semis.

Hear that sound? It’s the death knell ringing for River Plate.

Continuing their horrible week, which saw them fall 1-0 to Boca in the Superclasico this past Sunday, River put on a pathetic display tonight in front of a restless home crowd, losing 2-1 to Chivas de Guadalajara in the first leg of the 2008 Copa Sudamericana quarterfinals. With their entire season now resting on the Copa, los millonarios did themselves no favors, squandering chance after chance, and putting themselves in a difficult position ahead of the second leg, to be held in Mexico in two weeks. After tonight’s performance however, two weeks from now feels more like the end of the Copa campaign, and with it, our year, then an opportunity to advance.

It would be hard to criticize Diego Simeone’s tactics before the game: Use the height of Sebastian Abreu, partnered with Radamel Falcao, and try to score early. While that may have been the plan, it would apparently be too difficult to execute, with River crossing in ball after ball in the penalty area for much of the match to little or no avail, at times doing in with such randomness and imprecision, that it appeared to be a tactic out of desperation more than anything else.

The team would simply break down completely, with our passing particularly worsening as the minutes passed, and by the second half, with River already down one thanks to a stupid goal in the 44th gifted to Chivas, the players could not even perform the most basic functions – passing, defending, clearing the ball, etc. As the second half wore away, River looked, well, like the team that it is: a scared, intimidated, out of their league, deer-in-the-headlights looking, boys versus men, squad.

A penalty late in injury time gave us at least one goal to take into the second leg, but barring a complete turn-around in Mexico, the damage appears to have been done. With so much pressure on the squad from the media and the fans, River had a golden opportunity to make amends for this disastrous campaign by putting in a strong performance against a Chivas side that looked good, but were certainly beatable. In fact, all the Mexicans seemed to do was sit back and let River dick around with the ball, then hit them on the counter against our “defense.” It was an intelligent approach to the game, something this squad seems to have precious little of.

So now we must sift through the detritus of the match and see what we can take into Mexico for the second leg to eke out a victory. While I’m not one for making predictions, especially if they go against River, if we can’t score, defend, or pass the ball, I can’t see this going our way. Believe me, I’ll be there in two weeks, glued to my TV, wearing my beautiful kit, and singing my heart out, because this is River, and we never stop, even if the players do. But reason, the eternal enemy of the football supporter, is telling me things are not going to end well.

2008 Copa Sudamericana, Quarterfinal – Game 1
River Plate 1 – 2 Chivas de Guadalajara

Scoring Summary:
Omar Arellano (CdG), 44th
Marco De la Mora (CdG), 81st
Sebastián Abreu (RP), 91st

River Plate:
Juan Marcelo Ojeda
Paulo Ferrari, Gustavo Cabral, Eduardo Tuzzio, Cristian Villagra
Augusto Fernández, Leonardo Ponzio, Matías Abelairas
Diego Buonanotte
Radamel Falcao, Sebastián Abreu

Substitutions:
Mauro Rosales for Fernández, 56th
Rodrigo Archubi for Ferrari, 71th
Santiago Salcedo for Falcao, 75th

Highlights:

River Plate advanced to the quarterfinals of the 2008 Copa Sudamericana last night after a comfortable 2-1 victory at home over Uruguayan club, Defensor Sporting. Paulo Ferrari and Diego Barrado netted the two goals for la banda, who won 4-2 on aggregate over both legs.

Now, the squad will face Chivas de Guadalajara in the quarters. Should River defeat the Mexicans, that could potentially setup a semi-final with rivals Boca Juniors, should los bosteros defeat Brazilian club Sport Club Internacional.

2008 Copa Sudamericana, Round of 16 – Game 2
River Plate 2 – 1 Defensor Sporting

Scoring Summary:
Paulo Ferrari (RP), 7th
Diego Barrado (RP), 74th
Maximiliano Pérez (DS), 91st

River Plate:
Juan Marcelo Ojeda
Paulo Ferrari, Gustavo Cabral, Facundo Quiroga, Cristian Villagra
Mauro Rosales, Oscar Ahumada, Matías Abelairas
Mauro Díaz, Diego Buonanotte
Sebastián Abreu

Substitutions:
Danilo Gerlo for Cabral, 65th
Diego Barrado for Rosales, 67th
Rodrigo Archubi for Díaz , 77th

Highlights

Welcome back Sebastian Abreu.

In his debut last night against Defensor Sporting in the Copa Sudamericana, el Loco, in his first match since returning from Europe after a 4 month absence, led River Plate to a 2-1 victory in Montevideo, scoring both goals for la banda, and helping put the squad in a great position to reach the quarterfinals. With his 2 goals last night, Abreu now has netted 9 for los millonarios in international competitions.

It took Abreu all of 8 minutes to get back in the groove, coolly slotting the ball in the Defensor net after the opposing keeper bobbled his original shot on goal. It was no surprise that the goal came on a header, where the offense was able to take advantage of Abreu’s height, an element it has been missing this season. And the impact on his fellow teammates was contagious; in fact, in the first 30 minutes of the game, River displayed a newfound confidence that has been lacking in the league. Diego Buonanotte looked much more improved playing behind el Loco, with youngster Mauro Diaz impressing as well.

Abreu would add another in the second half, again beating the opposing keeper who again bobbled what should have been an easy ball, which a charging Abreu was able to chip over. River however would fall apart soon after. With two all-important away goals, the team tried to slow down the pace of the game, but several defensive lapses allowed Defensor too many opportunities to get back in the game. Abreu was pulled in the second half with an injury. Under-performer Santiago Salcedo continued his goal drought. River were left with 10 men after a second yellow ended Augusto Fernández’s night following a stupid challenge.

In fact, with so many mistakes the score could have been 5-2 considering all the open shots Defensor had, but a stellar performance by Juan Ojeda, coupled with shocking finishing by the home team, limited the damage to only one goal. Despite several close calls, River were able to hold on, and they now take their 2 precious away goals back to the Monumental for the second leg.

While last night’s victory was an important one in terms of restoring faith to a jaded fan-base after a disastrous start to the league, there are still some concerns moving forward. Yes, the squad looked much, much improved, and the addition of Abreu seems to have awoken the players and breathed new life in the offense. With the ariel attack now a legitimate option, smaller players like Buonanotte and Diaz can now use their speed to create chances. Juan Ojeda continues his brilliant form, saving at least 3 goals last night that a lesser keeper would have allowed in. As improved as the squad looked though, they still seemed to lose the plot as the game wore on, and too many mistakes gave River more nail-biting moments then necessary.

I’m thrilled with the result, but still cautious as I look ahead to the second leg. It does seem that River finally are playing with their heads, and with the league out of their sights, the squad appears to understand that this Copa is all that’s left in terms of titles this year, and that they had better leave it all out on the pitch. It wasn’t always pretty, but it was a fine start to this year’s Copa. Let’s hope it gets even better.

2008 Copa Sudamericana, Round of 16 – Game 1
Defensor Sporting 1 – 2 River Plate

Scoring Summary:
Sebastián Abreu (RP), 8th, 63rd
Mario Risso (DS), 40th

River Plate:
Juan Marcelo Ojeda
Paulo Ferrari, Gustavo Cabral, Facundo Quiroga, Cristian Villagra
Augusto Fernández, Oscar Ahumada, Matías Abelairas
Mauro Díaz, Diego Buonanotte
Sebastián Abreu

Substitutions:
Santiago Salcedo for Díaz, 62nd
Leonardo Ponzio for Abreu, 66th
Martín Galmarini for Buonanotte, 80th

Highlights

And so with that brief statement began one of the strangest stories this past week, a debate that, if you are at all familiar with football in Argentina, you know could only happen in Argentina: Is River simply playing badly this season? Or are they just playing without heart/ Without, yes, huevo?

It’s easy to see where this feeling from River fans comes from. The team have been an unmitigated disaster in this year’s Apertura, and while many felt that River, after losing players like Carrizo, Ortega, and Sanchez in the off-season would struggle to retain their league title, no one could have imagined that after only 7 games into the tournament, los millonarios would be done and dusted.

So now the focus shifts to the Copa Sudamericana, the continent’s second most prestigious tournament, and one that River have never won, having reached the final in 2003 only to lose to Peru’s Cienciano 4-3 on aggregate. If you’ll recall last year, River were denied a spot in the final when they lost to Arsenal de Sarandí in the semis on penalties. To help them win this elusive Cup, they have retained the services of Sebastian Abreu, the much maligned forward who joined the squad last season, and left to join Israel’s Beitar Jerusalem. With River in need of some help up front scoring goals, and Abreu unhappy in Europe, the deal was made to bring el Loco back.

Abreu won’t exactly be returning as the conquering hero. During the 2008 Clausura, el Loco only found the back of the net twice in the entire season, and often was the brunt of much abuse from the fans, sometimes actually deserving it. Granted, he did score 7 goals in the Copa Libertadores, including three in one match against San Martin in the group stages, but it’s still seems a huge risk on the part of Simeone to place Abreu as the piece of the puzzle that will reverse the squad’s fortunes.

But coming back to the issue of “huevo,” this deal brings up some interesting questions. River have been pursuing Abreu for weeks, however they’ve know in all that time that Abreu would be ineligible to play in the Apertura since the transfer window had closed, and only barring a massive injury to one of the current squad players would Abreu be allowed to play in the leauge. Are we to assume then that even prior to this weekend’s loss, Diego Simeone and the club were already conceding the Apertura, and instead focusing solely on the Cup? Does it make that much sense to bring in a reinforcement who you know from the outset can only participate in one competition? If that’s at all true, then essentially River have simply been walking through these first 7 league games. So what else to assume then that River aren’t playing 100% on the pitch, if it appears they aren’t even interested in competing? Where’s the huevo in that?

So are River a team with heart that is simply not playing well enough? Or are they just not trying? Simeone claims that the team is just not very good right now. From my point of view, it doesn’t really make a difference. The team is shocking, and whatever the reason, it’s no excuse for the way River has approached either the off-season, the league, or the Copa Sudamericana. Not enough reinforcements, poor to average performance on the field, and questionable priorities about which competitions to take seriously is leaving me pissed and nervous. What is certain is that if River fails to make something of the Copa, and if they make as big a disaster of it as they have the league, then expect the team to come away from this year with nothing more than egg on their face.

River Plate take on Defensor Sporting from Uruguay tomorrow night in Montevideo. You can watch it live on FSE at 7PM ET/4PM PT.