Despite Elimination, River Stays Strong

Two days after being eliminated from the Copa Santander Libertadores at the hands of San Lorenzo, River confronted Gimnasia L.P. this afternoon in the Monumental Stadium. The atmosphere in the stadium was not the greatest, especially against the players. I saw something that I had not seen in a long time. The fans began to throw corn as the players made their way on the field, symbolizing the famous “gallina” or “chicken” nickname that has tagged River a long time. This insult is usually performed by the fans of opposing teams but when your own fans do this, something does not seem right.

The beginning of the match commenced and right away one could see the nervousness in the River players. It seemed incredible that after Thursday’s loss, the players would show a sense of ambition to win to please the fans but this trait was missing. Gimnasia started to create more chances along Carrizo’s goal area and the Millonario’s defense began to leave open gaps for Gimnasia’s players. At the 26^th of the match, Piatti scored the first goal of the match and the tension in the Monumental Stadium got worse. Whistles, chants, and screams came out in all directions. River tied the match ten minutes later thanks to a goal by Abelairas. The tie would not last long as Gimnasia took the lead once again at the 40^th minute. The half ended and the ambience was horrible. At this point, everything seemed lost and the Clausura championship looked like it was slipping away. 

Once the second half started, Ariel Ortega and Oscar Ahumada came in as substitutes to bring some energy to River. This change resulted in a positive manner as River began to dominate the midfield of the pitch, a crucial area to win the match. Four minutes into the match, Diego Buonanotte scored and tied the match once again. As the fans began to push the team forward, Abelairas took River on the lead as his goal came in a few minutes later. It looked like a positive push by River and the moods began to change. Gimnasia looked lost and their ineffiency got the best of them as Omeño was ejected from the match. With a player up, River looked to seal the game and they did just that with Ariel Ortega scoring River’s fourth goal. As the match ended, the atmosphere changed from hateful to supportive but there were many who still feel cheated from Thursday’s loss, including myself.