River Plate president Stefano Di Carlo announced the dismissal of “around 15 players”, including several key figures, after another six months without titles for the popular red-stripe club.
After the departure of award-winning coach Marcelo Gallardo in February, River Plate was led by Eduardo Coudet. The coach took the team to the final of the Argentine Apertura Tournament, where they were defeated 3-2 by Belgrano on May 24.
The defeat extended River Plate’s title drought to almost three years, despite several important signings in recent seasons.
“That’s River, and losing a final doesn’t allow for any positive evaluation,” said the director in an interview with ESPN.
“We didn’t get the results we wanted. The drop in performance of many players forced the coach to turn to young people”, he added.
Di Carlo indicated that he spoke with Spaniard Pablo Longoria, recently hired as sporting director, about a significant shake-up of the squad.
“We decided together that around 15 players will leave. I have instructed the sporting director to start this process today,” he said.
“This will have to happen very quickly. We will sell some at the best possible price and others for less, accepting the loss, but we will put an end to an unsustainable situation,” he insisted.
The director said that the objective is to use the money released with these departures to sign “five to seven new players”.
The first signing was defender Nicolás Otamendi, Qatar World Cup champion in 2022, who, after almost 16 seasons in Europe, will return to Argentina as a free player.
The experienced defender, 38, signed his contract on Friday, extending it until the end of December 2027, before joining the Argentina squad for the World Cup in North America.
“Otamendi is a clear example for the dressing room. He is the type of player who brings order to everything, with a lot of experience and leadership in his position. We are happy and proud to have a world champion,” said Di Carlo.
River Plate already has Gonzalo Montiel, Marcos Acuña, Germán Pezzella and Franco Armani, all members of the champion squad in Qatar.
Furthermore, the club director commented on the situation of Colombian midfielder Juan Fernando Quintero, a River Plate idol, who may leave the team as he apparently is not a priority for coach Coudet.
“When we return (from the World Cup), we will talk and he will have space to see what he wants and what his goals are. Of course I would always like to have Juanfer in the team, but he has earned the right to choose what he wants,” explained Di Carlo.
