Martín Palermo will return to the Monumental exactly 26 years and 19 days after his first visit as a Estudiantes player, a consecrating 4-1, on May 2, 1997. Now, it will be his debut as a rival coach, since he was only local in his steps by Godoy Cruz and Arsenal and did not face Aldosivi.
That night of the match corresponding to the 10th date of the Apertura, the Titan scored two goals, the first with a great rejection pumped after a good collective play, and the second with a header. In those days, there was already talk of a possible pass to Boca, but River also signed up in the race to hire him. A few months later, he debuted with the Xeneize shirt, a club with which he played on the River court for another 10 games.
"We didn't expect to be winning 2-0 in the first 15 minutes," Palermo, who was 23, confessed in the dressing room afterwards. And he acknowledged that he had scored the best goal of his career up to that moment: "Yes, but at the same level as one very similar to one I did to Rosario Central. The differences were that the former was left-handed and this one was right-handed. And that tonight was more important."
Martín Palermo and his double against River in May 1997.
With the Boca shirt, Martín scored 3 goals in 10 games and achieved only one victory. However, one of the many most celebrated by the Titan and the people was the one he scored against the Peruvian team in the Qualifiers for the World Cup in South Africa. On October 10, 2009, Argentina drew 1-1 with Peru and complicated their chances of qualification. In the agony of the match, Palermo scored the winning goal, which was celebrated under a deluge, with an unforgettable celebration of Diego Maradona sliding in popcorn on the wet grass of the Monumental.
It was not the only game he played with the National Team in River. He was also on May 24, 2010, in the 5-0 against Canada, in the last international friendly before traveling to play the World Cup. He came on in the second half for Higuain but scored no goals.
Martín Palermo and his night of glory against Peru, in the rain and with Maradona as coach, on 10 of 10 of 2009. Photo: EFE/Cézaro de Luca.
The first match he played with Boca at the Monumental was historic and had him as a protagonist along with Diego Maradona. It was October 25, 1997. River was a two-time champion of Argentine football and was looking for the three-time championship. It had 22 points, one more than Boca. The millionaire technician was Ramón Díaz and the one from Boca, Héctor Veira. The stadium was exploding.
The local won 1-0 at the end of the first half thanks to a goal by Sergio Berti. At halftime, the Bambino took Diego out and those first 45 minutes were the last officials of the Argentine star. Nelson Vivas also came out. Claudio Caniggia and Juan Román Riquelme entered. At 2 minutes, Julio César Toresani equalized. And in the 22nd minute, with a header, the Titan scored the winning goal. Boca reached the top but then the title went to River. That night also meant the farewell of Maradona as a footballer.
It was the only triumph that Palermo achieved in its 10 visits to the Monumental with Boca. Afterwards, he drew four and lost five. And he scored two more goals, one in the 1-1 on October 15, 2000 and another on October 25, 2009, a match that also ended tied at one goal. The last visit was in 2010, on November 16, 2010, River won 1-0 with a goal from Jonatan Maidana, a victory that meant the confirmation of Juan José López as coach of a team that would end the season relegated.
The history of Palermo as a coach
Palermo began his coaching career at Godoy Cruz de Mendoza in 2012. Before coming to Platense he also managed Arsenal, Unión Española of Chile, Pachuca of Mexico, Curicó Unido of Chile and Aldosivi of Mar del Plata. Four times he faced River, always with his teams acting at home and never won.
The first two were with Tomba Mendoza, on April 22, 2013 lost 2-1 and on August 19, 2013, tied 0-0, both matches at the Malvinas Argentinas stadium. Then, with Arsenal, two new draws. On September 26, 2014, it was 1-1 and on March 17, 2015, with an incredible comeback from Millo that lost 3-1 and was tied by Rodrigo Mora with two minutes left.
After 12 and a half years, Martín Palermo returns to the Monumental, hoping to continue making history.
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