Silver river became champion of the Professional League-2023 of Argentine soccer by defeating Estudiantes 3-1 this Sunday, two dates before the end of the championship, in front of more than 80,000 spectators at the Monumental stadium.
River needed at least one point to become champion, but they shouted champion with a resounding victory Lucas Beltrán scored after a minute of play and soon put an end to the suspense, in a victory that later grew with a right hand from Uruguayan Nicolás de la Cruz (16) and a penalty scored by Esequiel Barco (31). Mauro Méndez (67) discounted for Pincha.
Thus, River celebrates its 38th National League title and the first for the red band club since it was led by Martín Demichelis, who at the end of last year took on the difficult task of succeeding Marcelo Gallardo, the most winning coach in the story of the Millionaire, with 14 crowns.
the dream ending
With 57 points in his pocket and two games to go, River became unattainable for Talleres (48), who on Friday had stretched the definition a bit by beating Huracán (1-0), in an exceptional campaign for the team from the band red.
DemichelisArriving at the popular rojiblanco club at the end of 2022 to succeed Gallardo, he has taken a formidable first step in his management, even though he has another enormous goal ahead of him, the Copa Libertadores, to which the Millionaires advanced to the round of 16 with just enough on the last date of the group stage.
Unlike what happened in the Cup, River’s time in the local tournament has been overwhelming, with results that exceeded much general irregularity. An achievement that is reflected in the fact that once he climbed to the top of the table, on the eighth date, he no longer fell from the first step, while a series of eight wins in a row made him unattainable for the rest.
Thus, River used another League title after an orphaned 2022 without celebrations, and returned to the top after obtaining the Professional League-2021, still with ‘Muñeco’ Gallardo as director.
«This team plays as the River people like, as the club’s history requires. Personally, I always wanted to be the protagonist here, it’s a very special moment,» said River’s top scorer, Lucas Beltrán, who scored 11 goals and became a starter ahead of other names like the Colombian Miguel Borja and the Venezuelan Salomón Rondón.
Beyond the fact that there was no trophy delivery, which took place on the last date, the club with the red band had the pleasure of taking the traditional Olympic lap on the pitch of a packed Monumental, at the height of a team that established itself with authority, with an ambitious and aggressive game, and personality to dominate the tournament almost from the beginning.
AFP