With no time for regrets, Demichelis obsessively retraces River’s fall: the unforced errors and what worries him most at the core

Martin Demichelis he is not a technician who stops at regrets. On Monday he slept little, got up early and was already at 8.30 River camp next to javier pinola, German Lux and the rest of his collaborators. In the office he has on the property on Route 205, in the heart of Ezeiza, the screens with the images prepared by the video analysts were turned on. The coach watched over and over again as he lost the match against Arsenal. And since yesterday, a few hours after the hard defeat at the Monumental, it has been proposed to adjust the details for the next date, Saturday at 19:15 with Lanús in Guidi and Ramón Cabrero.

The images stopped several times. Basically, in the defensive zone and midfield. Apart from the fact that there was a lack of efficiency in Alejandro Medina’s area on Sunday, there were arrivals. Without going any further, the number one and Arsenal captain covered 9 balls. What worries Demichelis the most is the midfield, where Enzo Pérez was overwhelmed for most of the match and where Felipe Peña Biafore stood out on loan.

The changes he made in the second half, in fact, are due to that palpable question from off the field. The 37-year-old landmark needed some company. “Santiago Simón, who hadn’t played since October, felt the wear and tear against Banfield on Wednesday and understood that Enzo Pérez must be surrounded by Nicolás De La Cruz and Agustín Palavecino. Hence the change. But it went badly,” explained the coach at the press conference. And speaking of the Uruguayan he added: “He’s one of the best in Argentine football, he’s improving and he’s indispensable for us. He is dynamic, he is a leader. But there was an emotional break for the worse as Arsenal leveled the exchanges. But he’s working to heal.”

Alongside the Uruguayan and Florida-born midfielder, Miguel Borja also came on to replace Lucas Beltrán, who was putting in a great performance from midfield forward. Era another mistake by Demichelis, who did not lack self-criticism. Lucas Beltrán’s departure was due to his intention to look for an alternative up front. But it didn’t go well with the duo Miguel Borja-Salomón Rondón. What also happened was that Lucas had put in a lot of physical effort,” he stressed. And of the Venezuelan, very fluctuating beyond the good movements he made between the central rivals without the ball, he admitted: “Surely he must be anxious to score, but he will get there. I have no doubt that we will reverse this situation, him and everyone.

From the center, where everything is off balance, backwards you have to fix the setback issues. Arsenal’s second goal had a lot of lack of coordination. “Leandro leaves, Robert also leaves, who leaves a very easy pass to the outside, and wants to cross Enzo Díaz from the centre-left towards the outside, freeing the dangerous goal area… We have to keep working, we have to keep working look for a mechanism that gives us solidity,” acknowledged Demichelis.

In this situation, the entry of De La Cruz to support Enzo Pérez would not attract attention. The coach, who started and finished in front of the television, is thinking about it seriously: last night he closely followed the match between Racing and Lanús, his next rival.