River faces Millonarios, from Colombia, in the second game of the preseason in the United States. The team led by Martín Demichelis has just beaten Monterrey (Mexico) 1-0 in the first friendly match thanks to a goal scored by Lucas Beltrán. The tour of the Florida peninsula will culminate next Tuesday with Vasco da Gama (Brazil). Then, Núñez’s men will put their energies into their Professional League debut, on Saturday, January 28, against Central Córdoba and in Santiago del Estero.
In the starting lineup for this Saturday, the presences of Felipe Peña Biafore, Tomás Castro Ponce and Flabián Londoño stand out. After his conquest against Monterrey, Beltrán will also be there from the start. And Franco Armani will return to the goal after winning the World Cup in Qatar 2022. At the desks, the leaders are focused on closing the two contracts for which progress was made during the week: Enzo Díaz (Talleres de Córdoba) and Salomón Rondón (free, from Everton of England).
The match begins with better ball circulation for the Argentine team. The first play of real danger comes after 13 minutes, after an opening to the left by Bruno Zuculini for Elías Gómez. The full-back tries a cross and Barco, facing the goal, raises his shot. River triangulates and makes easy passes. He needs to accelerate in three quarters of the field to be more sharp in attack.
Demichelis’s team has a characteristic gene, which can be seen from 20 minutes into the game: they press in three quarters and steal the ball easily. He blocks the Colombian receivers and stands in the opposite field. Peña Biafore almost took advantage of it with a shot from outside the area. Minutes later, Barco almost found the first goal of the night with a good free kick, which Álvaro Montero, the Millonarios goalkeeper, repelled with effort.
River’s problem occurs when whoever is going to press fails. It happens a couple of times: Millonarios mocks the device of the Argentines and counterattacks at full speed. Those led by Demichelis often end up defending hand in hand. He flirts with the defensive error, as in a triple play that almost ended in a Colombian goal: Armani, first and Elías Gómez, save Núñez’s men. The game is dynamic and the two teams reach the rival goal. Half of the field is a passage area.
The second half begins in the same vein, with River sent to attack and Millonarios ready to counterattack. The high pressure from those led by Demichelis continues, who has the entry of José Paradela instead of Castro Ponce. Barco finds the ball and starts another play, which ends with Beltrán free on the left wing. The striker defines with his left foot and Montero guesses his intention. River still lacks the goal. And in the next play it is Armani who saves the team from him, after an error in the start of Peña Biafore.
Millionaires have their moment, supported by the work of their number 8, Daniel Cataño. He can even convert the first goal of the game, but he fails in the finish. In the next play, the goal is from River. Mammana finds him, after a rebound in Montero.
River’s goal
THE NATION