A few minutes had passed since the triumph of River 2-0 ante National of Uruguay when the captain of the Uruguayan team, Diego Polenta, launched a phrase that was left floating around in the Monumental conference room. “We do not have a soccer field like this in Uruguayan soccer. I’m surprised. Not because of the environment, but because of the playing field. We would have to copy what this is a little bit because the truth is it is spectacular,” said the 32-year-old central defender. And he added: “The state of the playing field is noticeable. You know in the fields that we play in Uruguay. And when we go outside, to places like that, it is very noticeable. The ball, which goes faster than normal, stings them and falls on their chest and it goes over us due to a matter of getting used to it.” “I agree with Diego: the speed and rhythm on this court are different“added the coach Álvaro Recoba.
To the words of the footballer and the Chino They were completed by a journalist from a print media in the neighboring country. More words, less words, the reporter stated: “River is going to be one of the great candidates to win the Libertadores if he finishes first in the general table because playing in the Monumental he has a great advantage.
The review of River’s numbers playing at the Monumental supports the thoughts of the Uruguayans. Even the statistic he achieved Martin Demichelis -in office since November 2022- becomes even bigger when compared to the rest of the big clubs in Argentina.
Demichelis played 32 games at the Antonio Vespucio Liberti: he won 26, drew 4 and lost 2. The losses were against Arsenal (1-2, February 26, 2023) and against Huracán (1-2, November 4, 2023 , with Diego Martínez as coach). So, River with Micho in Núñez won 81% of the games and obtained 85% of the points. The numbers are fabulous. And difficult to match.
To compare with the other teams you have to take the games played at home since the beginning of last year until now. The differences are abysmal and only Rosario Central, like Miguel Ángel Russo As a coach, he is a little closer to River.
In that period, Boca He played 26 times in La Bombonera: he won 14, drew 7 and lost 5; he harvested the 62% of the points. Thus, the Xeneize prevails in the 54% of the duels it plays (a little more than half), very far from the 81% that River achieves.
Racing In the Cylinder he won 18 of the 33 games he played, drew 7 and lost 8; That is, the 54% of the matches he plays in Avellaneda and keeps the 61% of the points.
With Ruben Darío Insua on the bench, Saint Lawrence He became strong in the Gasómetro, although he lost less than he won. There were 34 games: 15 wins, 14 draws and 5 losses; he prevailed in 44% of the matches and bagged the 57% of the points.
Of the so-called large ones, Independent He is the one with the worst record in the chosen cut (Demichelis’s debut in River). In Avellaneda, Rojo played 26 duels, won 9, tied 9 and lost 8. In this way, the King of Cups barely prevails in the 34% of the matches at Ricardo Bochini and obtains the 46% of the points.
A special mention deserves Central Rosary, which weeks ago lost an undefeated 32 games against Barracas Central. El Canalla played 28 times at Gigante de Arroyito since January 1, 2023: they won 18, drew 9 and lost only against Handsome; is imposed on the 64% of the meetings; stays with him 75% of the points in dispute.
Thus, the statistics show that there is a powerful relationship between the fans and the team that causes thel Monumental is transformed into a true fortress.
“The atmosphere that the leaders first achieved with the renovation of the Monumental is very good. Something very strong energy was created between the fans and the team. Many tourists come to Buenos Aires and want to come see River. It is played without fences, they come families. It is a spectacle in every sense. The scenery is what also allows us to have this present. It is difficult for rivals to come here and we feel very comfortable. It also has to do with our way of playing,” Demichelis summed up Clarion in July of last year.
Messi, unbeatable at the Monumental
Lionel Messi, the captain of the Scaloneta, loves playing in the new Monumental stadium. The same thing happens to the rest of his teammates because the conditions on the playing field are similar to those experienced game by game in Europe.
“The only one that played us man to man very high was Uruguay, but it was on a very close field, which favored Uruguay’s game more. Because Bombonera is smaller than River’s field. I think that, if we played on the field of River, it was going to be another game,” said Dibu Martínez weeks ago.
But For Messi it is also special to play in Núñez because he has a special streak: he never lost. La Pulga played 25 games, with 20 wins and 5 draws. He scored 14 goals; that is, an average of 0.56 per match. Additionally, he delivered 9 assists.
Leo’s first time at the Monumental occurred on October 9, 2005, in Argentina’s 2-0 victory against Peru in the South American Qualifiers. The last time, meanwhile, was on October 12, 2023, in the 1-0 victory against Paraguay in the current Qualifiers.