It is not just another game for Boca. It's not even another Superclásico
.
This Sunday's duel against
River
at the Monumental will be fundamental to determine the direction of the team in 2024 and to evaluate - after 7 dates and a handful of friendlies - for the first time the work of
Diego Martínez
as the team's coach.
The challenge is huge, but also a turning point for a team that needs joy.
That's what it's about, an emotional turn of the wheel for a team that can no longer endure another disappointment.
Boca will arrive at the Monumental with a record of 7 wins in the last 30 games played
.
It seems like a lie, but it's real.
They barely managed to defeat in the 90 minutes (going through penalties is another story) Platense, Central Córdoba of Santiago del Estero, Unión de Santa Fe, Newell's and Godoy Cruz -in the last championship-, and Tigre and Central Córdoba in the current Cup of the league.
Very little.
PHOTO MARCELO CARROLL - Clarín
With River -in addition- they have just fallen in the last two matches, those of 2023 (1-0 in the Monumental with Borja's goal, from a penalty; and 2-0 in the Bombonera, with an alternative team, in the run-up to the Libertadores semi-final).
But beyond the numbers and the formation of the eleven that will take the field, the fundamental thing for Boca will be the attitude.
There is a stigma that is difficult for Boca fans to recognize, but in the last decade (or rather, since the crossing through Sudamericana in 2015) to the present, River was a clear dominator of the Superclásicos.
But not because of the results
per se,
but because of the way of playing.
River has been playing better than Boca for a while.
However, everything has an end and especially streaks in football.
That is why for Boca a victory this Sunday will mean a change of energy and a launching platform to dream of a year with titles and celebrations.
It seems time to strike, since after the departure of Marcelo Gallardo that performance curve in the Millonario seems to have begun its inevitable decline.
So what does Boca have to do to celebrate at the Monumental?
Go and play as equals, bet on winning and not speculate on a tie that,
a priori
, seems like a good deal.
And this goes beyond the result: with Sebastián Battaglia on the bench, in 2022, Boca defended itself and won 1-0 with Villa's goal;
In 2023, with Jorge Almirón, he did the same, but lost 1-0 due to Borja's penalty.
It is known that no tactic guarantees a victory, but the image, the photo with which Núñez's Xeneize leaves, will be important.
PHOTO MARCELO CARROLL - Clarín
That's why Martínez came to Boca, to change the image.
A coach who went through all the categories of Argentine football.
That even in the most difficult conditions (in Ituzaingó, Cañuelas or Midland) he always tried to play the ball well, have a balanced team, but that thinks about the front goal and with players with good footing (Altamirano and Joao, in the promotion with Estudiantes, in 2019; Menossi, Zabala and Magnín in the First National title with Tigre, in 2021).
"The idea is not negotiated
," is one of the coach's mantras.
Boca must bet on a winner in Núñez.
You have something to be excited about.
He knows his rival's weaknesses (he must pressure the departure of González Pirez, as Falcioni's Banfield did) and what his main arguments are for taking the hit: intensity and good handling of the ball.
Small detail: the coach still has to define the midfield.
Miguel Merentiel and Edinson Cavani will be in attack;
Sergio Romero will be the goalkeeper;
The defense will be the one that did not receive goals against Tigre, Defensa y Justicia and Central Córdoba, that is, Luis Advíncula, Cristian Lema, Jorge Figal and Lautaro Blanco.
And in the middle are the doubts: Kevin Zenón, on the left, is the only certainty;
then, Equi or Campuzano?
Medina or Bullaude?
Blondel or Jabes Saralegui?
At this point it seems that it is not about names, but a matter of attitude.