Marked for Facundo Pérez
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market18 Sep 2028
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at River Plate, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad18 Sep 2028
Carlos Rodríguez was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad18 Sep 2028
Federico Bisanz falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The dugout18 Sep 2028
news_b_reunited_with_his_manager
The dugout18 Sep 2028
Facundo Pérez is still being punished for one mistake
Nobody will confirm it and the team sheets confirm it every week. One error has bought him a spell as second choice that is already longer than the error deserved.
The dugout18 Sep 2028
Santiago Romero asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad21 Aug 2028
Carlos Rodríguez and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad21 Aug 2028
Federico Bisanz falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The dugout21 Aug 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Alejandro Prieto, and the manager let it.
The dugout21 Aug 2028
The manager has not finished forgetting Facundo Pérez's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
The dugout21 Aug 2028
Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at River Plate. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.
Squad21 Aug 2028
“I did not come here to warm up in front of people.” He is out of contract eventually, he is old enough to count the weeks, and River Plate will have to give him a reason to stay or an exit.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Player ratings24 Jul 2028
Successful dribbles: 50. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Match22 Jul 2028
No end in sight to River Plate's wait for a win
6 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at River Plate has to find a result from somewhere.
Match22 Jul 2028
6 games without scoring. Strikers stop looking up, midfielders take the extra touch, and every shot that clears the bar is followed by a groan that has been building since the last goal.
The dugout24 Jul 2028
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” River Plate may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Boardroom24 Jul 2028
Window shuts: 3 in, 5 out at River Plate
The deadline has passed and the squad is the squad. 3 arrived, 5 left, and everything else printed about this club last month was a rumour that stayed one.
Market24 Jul 2028
Danubio come back empty-handed
The bid was some way short and River Plate did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.
Squad24 Jul 2028
Federico Bisanz and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad24 Jul 2028
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Carlos Rodríguez was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Transfer targets24 Jul 2028
The clock did what Central Espanol would not, and ended it. Supporters who watched the countdown will spend the next window doing it again.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match27 May 2028
No end in sight to River Plate's wait for a win
8 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at River Plate has to find a result from somewhere.
Match29 May 2028
River Plate refuse to drop out of the race
Position 3, 25 points, and the result everyone checks first is now theirs. The word is still not being said around the ground, which is how you know everyone is thinking it.
Match27 May 2028
Still nobody has beaten River Plate
The unbeaten run reaches 11. Some of them were wins and some were escapes, but a side that refuses to lose is a side other dressing rooms talk about.
Player ratings29 May 2028
Successful dribbles: 27. There was always a defender in front of him and there was never a defender in front of him for long.
Squad29 May 2028
Federico Bisanz and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad29 May 2028
Felipe Chiappini falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Match27 May 2028
The goals have deserted River Plate
3 matches, no goals, and a training ground that has tried everything. It will end — droughts always do — but nobody at River Plate can tell you which week it ends in.
Player ratings29 May 2028
Some games turn on a moment; this one turned on a man. 7.30 on the card, and the River Plate support went home talking about one name.
The dugout29 May 2028
Half-satisfied: Henry Wilson on the draw
“There are things I liked and things we will be doing on Tuesday until they are right.” 0‑0, and a manager who had already decided what Tuesday looked like.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market15 May 2028
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at River Plate, and it is not being withdrawn.
Match13 May 2028
6 matches without a win for River Plate
The run now stands at 6, and the questions being asked around River Plate are no longer polite ones.
Match13 May 2028
Still nobody has beaten River Plate
The unbeaten run reaches 9. Some of them were wins and some were escapes, but a side that refuses to lose is a side other dressing rooms talk about.
The dugout15 May 2028
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” River Plate may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad15 May 2028
Álex Perdomo in a row with a teammate
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at River Plate this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad15 May 2028
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Federico Bisanz was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Player ratings15 May 2028
Marked 7.29 on an afternoon he ran from the first whistle to the last. Whatever else went wrong, River Plate had the best player on the pitch.
The dugout15 May 2028
“It is not the end of the world and it is not good enough. Both of those are true.” The manager, after a 0‑0 draw, said the honest thing and then went to say it again inside.
Player ratings15 May 2028
Successful dribbles: 13. There was always a defender in front of him and there was never a defender in front of him for long.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Player ratings17 Apr 2028
Successful dribbles: 41. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad17 Apr 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at River Plate this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad17 Apr 2028
Carlos Rodríguez falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The dugout17 Apr 2028
The manager makes an example of Emilio Crespo
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Player ratings17 Apr 2028
Marked 7.38 on an afternoon he ran from the first whistle to the last. Whatever else went wrong, River Plate had the best player on the pitch.
Market17 Apr 2028
Santiago Romero is free to find somewhere else
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at River Plate has been clear about where Santiago Romero stands, which is more than many ever get.
The dugout17 Apr 2028
“A point is a point and I will take it, but we should have had all three.” Henry Wilson after the 0‑0 draw, and the sentence every manager in the country said at some stage this weekend.
The dugout17 Apr 2028
Federico Ibáñez dropped after a run of poor form
The one version of being left out a player cannot argue with, and the one he takes worst. Somebody else has been better and the team sheet says so, in public, every week until it changes.
The dugout17 Apr 2028
Nobody will confirm this and nothing else explains the last month of selections. A costly error buys a player a period of being second choice that is always longer than the error was.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad10 Apr 2028
Francisco Triver damages knee ligaments — 21 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 21 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.
Player ratings10 Apr 2028
Successful dribbles: 35. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Market10 Apr 2028
Inti López hands in a written request
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what River Plate can pretend not to have heard.
Squad10 Apr 2028
Federico Bisanz was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Market10 Apr 2028
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at River Plate has been clear about where Cristian Techera stands, which is more than many ever get.
Squad10 Apr 2028
Words at River Plate training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Federico Ibáñez is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Player ratings10 Apr 2028
A mark of 7.22, and nobody in the ground would argue with it. He was involved in everything that mattered and most of what did not.
The dugout10 Apr 2028
The view from the dugout
“We did not lose. Some weeks that is all you get, and I would rather have the point than not.” Henry Wilson chose the glass-half-full version of 0‑0; the supporters left with the other one.
The dugout10 Apr 2028
Somebody else is better right now than Alejandro Prieto
The team sheet says it in public every week until it changes. The only version of being dropped a footballer cannot argue with, and the one he takes hardest.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad20 Mar 2028
A knee injury of the worst kind for Francisco Triver
44 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. River Plate lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Match15 Mar 2028
The small margins put River Plate out
Out, 0‑1 to Colon, and the long argument about which of the small moments decided it. The league is all there is now, and everybody knows it.
Match18 Mar 2028
The 86th minute, half the ground already edging towards the exits, and Federico Bisanz decided nobody was going anywhere. Rampla Juniors had no time left to answer.
Player ratings20 Mar 2028
Successful dribbles: 24. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Squad20 Mar 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at River Plate this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The dugout20 Mar 2028
The manager makes an example of Facundo Parada
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
Player ratings20 Mar 2028
Ninety minutes of Federico Bisanz at his very best
Marked 8.36. Players have careers without a single afternoon like this in them, and he has just had one in front of everybody at River Plate.
Squad20 Mar 2028
Words at River Plate training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Federico Ibáñez is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market24 Jan 2028
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at River Plate, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad24 Jan 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at River Plate this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad24 Jan 2028
Felipe Chiappini falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The dugout24 Jan 2028
He asked about his future and was given an answer with minutes in it. The manager has now made a promise in a building where promises are remembered, and the clock on it has started.
Market24 Jan 2028
River Plate have made Igor Leonardi available for transfer. A career at this club is over in all but paperwork.
Squad24 Jan 2028
The training reports on Nicolás dos Santos are not good
A bad Saturday is forgiven; a bad Tuesday is chosen. Standards have slipped and in a building where everybody watches everybody, it has been noticed.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
The terraces18 Oct 2027
The mood at River Plate has turned into something else
Supporters who sing when it goes badly are supporters. Supporters who gather afterwards are a problem, and everybody inside the building knows which of the two this now is.
Squad18 Oct 2027
A fracture rules Carlos Muela out for 119 days
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason River Plate will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Market18 Oct 2027
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
The dugout18 Oct 2027
Facundo Pérez: that is not what I was promised
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” River Plate have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad18 Oct 2027
Carlos Rodríguez and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad18 Oct 2027
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Federico Ibáñez was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match27 Mar 2027
8 matches without a win for River Plate
The run now stands at 8, and the questions being asked around River Plate are no longer polite ones.
Match27 Mar 2027
6 matches without a goal for River Plate
The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 6 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.
Squad29 Mar 2027
Carlos Rodríguez was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Squad29 Mar 2027
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Felipe Chiappini was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Player ratings29 Mar 2027
A mark of 7.56, and nobody in the ground would argue with it. He was involved in everything that mattered and most of what did not.
Player ratings29 Mar 2027
Successful dribbles: 15. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
The dugout29 Mar 2027
The manager makes an example of Facundo Pérez
“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.
The dugout29 Mar 2027
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Cristian Techera trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
The dugout29 Mar 2027
“There are things I liked and things we will be doing on Tuesday until they are right.” 0‑0, and a manager who had already decided what Tuesday looked like.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad22 Feb 2027
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 6 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Squad22 Feb 2027
Carlos Rodríguez and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad22 Feb 2027
Facundo Pérez pulls a muscle — 14 days out
The injury that keeps coming back, keeps being rushed back from, and quietly costs more careers than the dramatic ones. 14 days is the estimate; the honest figure depends on whether anybody is patient.
Squad22 Feb 2027
200 games in the shirt. Nobody sets out to build a record like that; it happens to a certain kind of player at a certain kind of club, and this town knows what it has.
Match20 Feb 2027
A 1‑1 draw with Progreso leaves the dressing room somewhere between relief and regret.
The dugout22 Feb 2027
The manager has not finished forgetting Alejandro García's mistake
Publicly it is behind everybody. It is not behind the man who picks the team, and the only place that shows is a team sheet. He will get another chance; he will get it in a match that matters less.
The dugout22 Feb 2027
“There are things I liked and things we will be doing on Tuesday until they are right.” 1‑1, and a manager who had already decided what Tuesday looked like.
The dugout22 Feb 2027
Somebody else is better right now than Santiago Romero
The team sheet says it in public every week until it changes. The only version of being dropped a footballer cannot argue with, and the one he takes hardest.
Player ratings22 Feb 2027
A mark of 4.84 tells the story without any need for embellishment. He will want the tape of this one quietly lost.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad1 Feb 2027
A knee injury of the worst kind for Matías Escobar
22 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. River Plate lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Squad1 Feb 2027
Carlos Rodríguez was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The dugout1 Feb 2027
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
Squad1 Feb 2027
Felipe Chiappini falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Squad1 Feb 2027
Somebody has moved past him. It is not a dropping and it is worse than one, because a dropping is about a Saturday and this is about where he stands.
The dugout1 Feb 2027
A conversation in the manager’s office, and a commitment that came out of it. Promises like that are cheap to make and expensive to break, and Cristian Techera has written the date down.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market23 Nov 2026
“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.
Squad23 Nov 2026
Carlos Rodríguez and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad23 Nov 2026
Words at River Plate training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Cristian Techera is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The dugout23 Nov 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Inti López, and the manager let it.
Squad23 Nov 2026
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Facundo Pérez commits to River Plate for another 4 years.
Squad23 Nov 2026
Too much change too quickly at River Plate
9 signings in three months. Every one of them may be an upgrade and the team can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild that never appears in the transfer-window verdicts.