River breaks its worst streak thanks to Correa and Almada

“I’m very calm. I’m very optimistic. We’re going to improve. The truth is, we have a great team. We’re going to play very good football,” he says first. And after a while he assures: “I feel that the players are throwing themselves headlong for me and for River. Having that feeling is very important.”

Everything was declared by Eduardo Coudet after River’s victory, a victory that helped him break the worst streak in history that marked six consecutive defeats and that in the current Clausura Tournament placed him last in his zone without points and without goals in favor.

The former Alavés coach looked relieved and also excited. This is what happened to all of River. This is what also happened to captain Nicolás Otamendi, who noted: “I am very happy with the victory because we needed it. They were very hard, very complicated days.” And it is the same thing that the recently incorporated Thiago Almada transmitted: “I am very happy for the debut with this shirt, but the most important thing was the team’s victory because we came from difficult days.”

River broke its worst streak just the day Almada debuted, the former Atlético de Madrid star of the most expensive purchase in the history of Argentine football. Thiago played lying on the left, with Angel Correa in the middle and with Joaquín Freitas open on the right. That three-man line behind Lucas Beltrán, the center forward, was supported by two midfielders to balance such as Tobías Andrada and Aníbal Moreno.

Just as River had lost the four games it had played in this tournament, also like its rival, Argentinos Juniors, it had won all four games played. That is why the millionaire victory is also valuable.

Without shining, far from convincing and exciting, River was a little more than Argentinos and deserved to win. He opened it in a dirty play, where he had two lucky rebounds after separate touches from Correa and Almada that left Gonzalo Montiel alone in goal position, who coolly defined. The second was scored by Angel Correa from a penalty, near the end, after an infraction that had been committed against him.

Argentinos never let go too much, except for a period in the second half in which Hernán López Muñoz shook the crossbar. Nicolás Diez’s team lacked depth. However, River always gave the feeling of being closer in a fairly even development.

Correa left some interesting accelerations. Almada did not weigh too much and was far from the area. It was Captain Otamendi’s best production. And not much else.

The most important thing for River was to win. Get out of the bad streak to achieve peace of mind and search for a defined identity, which will surely be supported by what Correa and Almada can generate as a society.

Coudet’s team left the last place in Group B of the Clausura, surpassing Aldosivi. On Wednesday they will play the first leg of the round of 16 of the Sudamericana against Independiente Santa Fe in Bogotá. He will do everything trying to combine a positive result with growth in the game. It is the only way to give solidity to illusions.