the morbidity of Gallardo vs Demichelis, with his departure from the Monumental still fresh

One of the things that was most latent in the run-up to the draw for Club World Cup It was if there was a possibility that River will face Rayados de Monterreythe team that is led by Martin Demicheliswhose departure from the Núñez institution is still fresh, before the return of Marcelo Gallardo.

And finally chance did its thing and River and Rayados were in the same groupE and will face each other on the second day of the world event that will take place in the United States, between June 15 and July 13, 2025. And in the football world it is already called the morbid match..

It happens that, beyond the emotional farewell they gave him at the Monumental, Micho’s departure was still traumatic. It happened in the middle of the competition, close to playing in the round of 16 of the Copa Libertadores and with a team that was losing its performance game by game and a locker room that was cracked after leaks to the press of Micho’s criticism of some players. last year, which led to a confrontation with Enzo Perez and the departure (by his own decision) of the Mendoza at the end of 2023.

Demichelis had been chosen as Gallardo’s replacement after Muñeco put an end to his first cycle at the club, in October 2022. A month later, Micho took over. And the initial enthusiasm grew as the team advanced to the title in the 2023 Professional League, which it won comfortably with two dates remaining.

However, he could never live with the shadow of the statue of Gallardo. First, for its own reasons, by wanting to seek to differentiate itself at all times in the Muñeco cycle, beyond the public statements of the occasion. And then, outwards when the questions of many fans began and comparisons became inevitable. Of course, on the field there was never a song for El Muñeco while Micho was on the substitute bench.

But the whistles did appear after the elimination with Boca in the League Cup in April of this year. And from there, the River tribune began to be the focus of attention on how he reacted with Demichelis according to the vicissitudes of his team.

At that point, all the degradation that occurred in Demichelis’ cycle after the League championship was already weighingwhich could not be alleviated by the titles in the Champions Trophy, the Argentine Super Cup, having qualified for the Club World Cup (also for Gallardo’s first cycle) and finishing as the best first in the Copa Libertadores.

After winning the League, a series of events began that dynamited Micho’s cycle at River. The early eliminations in the Argentine Cup and Libertadores in 2023; the problem of off with the press; the eliminations in the League Cup ’23 and ’24 (against Central and Boca, respectively); the scandalous elimination with Temperley and painful defeats like those of Riestra.

Micho’s cycle was worn out but they still renewed his confidence since he had a contract until December 2025. But after the holidays and the winter mini-preseason, the team got off to a bad start and it was put to an end. Right at that moment, the Doll was free. And his return to have the second cycle was finalized.

In recent times, Gallardo and Demichelis had only one meeting, which was the day of the inauguration of the statue of the award-winning coach.. And there was a cordial greeting between the two in the club museum. Previously, the Doll had looked for Micho to return to River as a player. It was in 2016 but at that time the former defender had to have surgery and they couldn’t wait for him. He retired shortly after. In any case, beyond those issues, there was no relationship between the two in recent years. And although the work transition between their technical bodies was respectful and orderly, there was some misgiving.

After leaving River, Micho immediately accepted Rayados’ offer. Now, they are playing in the Liga MX semifinal (they lost the first leg with San Luis by 2 to 1 and now they have the return home). And in the Club World Cup he will meet River again in his life, now as a rival. And there will be so much talk about the subject between now and June that the morbidity will feed more and more.