Córdoba will be the headquarters of a Super classic in which River will have the focus on its forward. The flashes of the millionaire team from the quarterfinals of the League Cup They will be focused on the attackers, who have been the support of the team throughout the year: 26 goals which he achieved in the 13 games of the tournament, 21 were signed by the four forwards of the squad, with a stellar role of Miguel Ángel Borja, author of 12y Facundo Colidio, who scored 6. But the presence of both at the Mario Kempes stadium is not yet guaranteed. The Colombian will reach the limit for a muscle overload in the right hamstring and the former Boca footballer has not yet won undisputed ownership. Is a couple that started at full speed, fizzled out and now has serious intentions of being reborn.
Throughout 2024, technical director Martín Demichelis used six attacking compositions among the 18 matches in all competitions. The most used was Borja-Colidio, but mainly during the first part of the year, since Pablo Solari It was affected by the U-23 Pre-Olympic. The Hummingbird and the blond played together against Argentinos Juniors (1-1), Vélez (5-0), Excursionistas (3-0), Riestra (3-0) and Atlético Tucumán (0-0). In those matches, the Colombian scored six goals (including a hat trick against Vélez) and Colidio scored a double against Fortín at the Monumental.
After those five games, the coach chose the Borja-Solari-Colidio trident on four occasions, Borja-Solari and Borja only in three games in each case, Colidio-Solari in two, and in only one, Colidio as the only reference Of attack. What is shaping up for Sunday’s classic in Córdoba? Although he does not usually accelerate recovery processes, Demichelis has decided to wait until the last minute for the Colombian, who is recovering from muscular overload. On Thursday of last week he came out with fatigue against Nacional, from Uruguay; On Monday he missed the duel with Instituto to avoid risking a major injury and only in practice this Thursday did he leave the gym and kinesiology to jog on the field and do light tasks with the ball.
Even without having the guarantee of reaching 100% physically, Borja is working hard on his recovery to play against Boca and settle a pending account: being a starter in a superclásico. Since his arrival at River, in July 2022, he has never acted from the beginning in the four classics that he had ahead of him: he was a substitute by decision of Marcelo Gallardo and played 45 minutes in the 1-0 loss at La Bombonera in 2022; He entered and converted a penalty in the 1-0 victory in the 2023 Professional League, when Lucas Beltrán was the starter; He did not play in the 2-0 away win for the 2023 League Cup because Demichelis prioritized Salomón Rondón as a starter, and he played just 24 minutes from the bench in the 1-1 in February of this year, after an injury to the left adductor. This Sunday he will be able to have his first start.
What does Borja give to the team? Firepower in the area: sum a little every 74 minutes in the League Cup and is the third player in effective shots on goal (1.5) per game, behind Colidio and Solari (1.6), and fifth in total shots per game (3.1). Throughout the year he started 15 of River’s 18 games, and brought out of his mind a ambiguous 2023 in which he scored 13 times in 40 games (just 18 as a starter). “Miguel in the area is lethal,” Demichelis praised him weeks ago, who made a request to his number 9: wait patiently in the area, without desperation to go out and get the ball.
Among the schemes that the coach has used, the forward of 31 years He seems more comfortable when playing with a partner in the current 4-3-1-2 than when using a 4-2-3-1 or a 4-3-3. For this reason, the idea of maintaining, to face Boca, the formation of the last two matches is firm in the coach’s mind. And the one who can get involved is Colidio, who has just finished with a spectacular hat-trick to Institute in Córdoba. Author of six goals in thirteen appearances in the tournament (nine from the start), he scored from the bench against Nacional, from Montevideo, in the recent Copa Libertadores victory and left behind a long streak: he had scored only one goal, against Gimnasia La Silver (3-1), in the last 13 games. Now in a state of grace, he fights hand in hand with Solari, scorer of the goal in the last superclásico and starter in both the Libertadores and the League Cup.
What does Colidio bring to the team? Mobility throughout the attack front, versatility y technique to associate with their peers. Demichelis himself explained it after the three goals in Alta Córdoba: “Facundo can cover several positions: midfielder, behind a forward, as double front. Against Rosario Central we played with Solari and Colidio, and [Claudio] Echeverri from behind. When you have complete players and they move through different positions, the better it is. The goals arrived. He was erratic in recent weeks, and now the goals will give him peace. I hope I gain confidence.”
For Colidio, who emerged in the lower divisions of Boca, it will be a special commitment: after losing all five games with the Tigre shirt against the club of his football origin (including the final of the 2021 League Cup, in Córdoba), he debuted in a superclásico in last October’s 2-0 at La Bombonera when he entered through Rondón at 18 minutes into the final stage. He is now on the verge of his first opportunity as a starter, at 24 years. Beyond the seven years of distance between each other, River’s two scorers are waiting for a unique opportunity in their careers. And Demichelis needs so many of him. Wholesale.