River Plate has its sights set on the crossing next Tuesday, May 7 against National in Uruguay because a victory could leave him one step away from qualifying for the round of 16 of the Libertadores Cup with two days left until the closing of the group stage. Those led by Martin Demichelis They already left behind the defeat against Boca Juniors in it Super classic and they focus on what will be a new transfer market that is just around the corner.
In chat with ESPN TeamFthe vice president of the institution, Matías Patanianwas consulted about a name that began to bounce around the offices of the Monumental this Wednesday: Iker Muniain. The footballer of Athletic Club of Bilbao announced that he will leave the club on June 30 after 15 seasons and Spanish newspapers such as Ace and Brand They put the chance of landing in the 31-year-old midfielder among the first options. Millionaire, a club of which he is a supporter. Faced with this, the leader declared: “We know of his fanaticism for River, and that he also ends his contractual relationship with Bilbao. Afterwards, you have to evaluate a lot of things: if you really want to come to Argentina, what your adaptation would be like, if at that moment River has priority in the position in which you play or in others.”.
In this sense, he was cautious about the possible arrival of the player who has just been champion of the Copa del Rey: “It is something to work on throughout these months. I don’t like raising expectations that if they don’t happen, they look like a failure.. Yes we know that he is from River Plate, he has already told his story of December 9 in the (Santiago) Bernabeuand we know that he has decided to end his time at Bilbao. We seriously can’t talk about anything anymore.”.
The midfielder had told in 2022 the crazy thing he did to see the team in that final of the 2018 Copa Libertadores: “I am a big fan of River Plate. I have the game here, I have to go to Madrid, I have to go watch, be with my team, with River Plate cheering. It so happened that I was playing a game with Athletic Bilbao on Monday, and the game was on Sunday. One day before. We were in decline. It was December, the team was horrible. They had fired the coach and there was a new one. The worst situation you can imagine.” “We arrived in Madrid and there were 50 thousand people from River, I couldn’t go with my face uncovered. Tomorrow I have a game and I’m going to go out everywhere. I grabbed a wig, some glasses, a cap and we went to the street”, surprised.
* The message sent by Gallardo when River became champion
Another name that emerged on the radar of River Plate to repatriate him in the short term was German Pezzellawho has a contract until 2026 with his club: “He is competing with Betis and has a lot left to play. So, whether it is the case with him or other names, Mentioning or taking for granted some issue linked to a surname can sometimes get in the way.. We have to let the season end, Betis and we are playing things and It is not good to anticipate publicly to talk about issues that may or may not occur.”.
On the other hand, Patanian responded on different topics, among which a mention of Marcelo Gallardowinningest coach in the history of the Banddue to his attitude after one of the three titles achieved by Martin Demichelis: “We have written to each other. Marcelo has had the great gesture of writing to us when we became champions and I also received an audio from him when River became champion in which He stated that he was very happy and that, in some way, he saw continuity in the entire process that he had done.”.
In a different vein, he accompanied what Demichelis said about Franco Mastantuono after scoring the winning goal against Libertad in Paraguay for the Copa Libertadores: “We know that there are many people asking about him indirectly. Scouts come to watch River games, we know, they often call us. We understand that he is a player that the great powers are beginning to see, but also We understand that he is 16 years old and we have to keep him as calm as possible for the benefit of him and the club.”.
Finally, he expressed himself about a possible continuity of the little devil Echeverri beyond December 2024: “No, what is signed is what you already know. There was a sale and, at the same time, a loan with Manchester City that expires at the end of the year. That’s what’s signed. That’s the only truth. “In order not to raise false expectations or create certain illusions, we must stick to what was signed and is in force.”
