Coudet exits River Plate after less than seven months in charge

Eduardo Coudet’s time as head coach of domestic giants River Plate has ended after the club’s crushing midweek elimination from the Copa Sudamericana.

Coudet’s exit was confirmed Thursday afternoon by club president Stefano Di Carlo during a press conference at the side’s Monumental Stadium in Buenos Aires, who said that both parties agreed to cut ties.

“Coudet told us he wished to step down. It is a decision we have reached by mutual agreement with ‘Chacho’,” confirmed Di Carlo, with Coudet and Enzo Francescoli, the club’s technical secretary, seated alongside him

Di Carlo confirmed that former River midfielder Leonardo Ponzio, who is already on the coaching staff, would take over as interim coach until Coudet’s replacement is announced.

Coudet leaves his post after less than seven months in charge, with a record of 14 wins, five draws and eight defeats. It has been a traumatic year for the Millonario, who saw club icon Marcelo Gallardo depart as head coach in February.

River’s president said the search for a new boss is already underway.

“We began this process with enormous conviction and determination. We have also accompanied him [Coudet] in this decision with that same conviction and determination. It is his personal decision,” Di Carlo added.

Coudet then took the floor, giving an assessment of his time in charge. After highlighting “a good start,” in which his team managed to “reach a final [of the Apertura tournament] and have a good run in the Copa [Sudamericana],” the coach admitted it had been a poor start to the second half of the campaign.

“We said from the beginning that there was a process, but that it is unsustainable without results. I was the first to set myself deadlines and to understand that at River you have to win and play well,” said the experienced coach.

Admitting that the buck stopped with him, Coudet conceded “you can’t just blame misfortune or bad luck” for negative results.

“Yesterday [against Santa Fe] was a match we should have won comfortably, and we ended up being eliminated. That was a decisive turning point, and the timing [of my departure] is logical, given what this club requires and the demands it places on you,” the manager said.

“I’m grateful to the club and to the players. A great squad was put together, and in time it will bring them a great deal of joy. Time will put things in order. This squad will win many trophies for River. I’ll now support them from the outside. This is football, and sometimes things turn out this way,” he concluded.

Disappointing exit

Coudet’s final chapter at River came to an end in front of a stunned Monumental, which witnessed 22 penalties in a dramatic shoot-out after a 1-1 draw. 

The side played well for long stretches and deserved the win, but the ghosts of recent form returned in the decisive stages, allowing Santa Fe to nick an equaliser and pull off a stunning shoot-out comeback. 

All the players on the pitch took a spot-kick, with the decisive failed effort delivered by goalkeeper Santiago Beltrán. He fired over the bar after slipping – a cruel blow that came after he had stopped three penalties from River’s opponents. 

That low was in stark contrast to Coudet’s initial time in charge. River qualified for the final of the Apertura tournament and were leading in the decider against Belgrano until the 84th minute – a dramatic collapse saw them lose 3-2 and the title with it. 

The Millo never seemed to recover from that blow and, despite splashing the cash on a series of returning national team stars, the second half of the season started just as badly – an early exit from the Copa Argentina at the hands of Aldosivi.

Coudet has come under increasing pressure in recent weeks. River have won just once in their last nine matches in all competitions and sit second-bottom of their group in the Clausura. Things could get even worse, given the team are currently outside the play-off places and qualification spots for the 2027 continental competitions.

On Wednesday night, Coudet did not attend the mandatory post-match press conference and left the Monumental in the early hours of the morning. Rumours  following a meeting with the club’s directors. The board has also come under fire from supporters over its decision to leave 15 players out of the squad following the first half of the season.

The head coach has also been criticised for his management of the squad. As many as 15 players have been forced to train away from the first-team squad in a bid to speed their exits. Spaces are necessary following the arrival of three World Cup winners: defender Nicolás Otamendi, who immediately took over as captain; forward Ángel Correa; and midfielder Thiago Almada, the most expensive transfer in the history of Argentine football, signed from Atlético Madrid for a cool 20 million euros.

Coudet’s departure will do little to ease the crisis. With almost four months of the season still to go, River have only the Clausura left and need a remarkable turnaround to have any chance of reaching the play-offs.

More ambitious targets, such as winning the Clausura to qualify for the 2027 Copa Libertadores or finishing the year among the top three in the annual table, appear unlikely.

Search for successor

The search for Coudet’s successor is already underway, with local media name-checking Ramón Díaz, Hernán Crespo and Santiago Solari as the frontrunners.

Reserve team coach Marcelo Escudero– who stepped in after Marcelo Gallardo’s departure – is expected to take temporary charge for Sunday’s meeting with Banfield as the club’s board weighs up its options.

Díaz, whose name was chanted by fans at the Monumental this week, is the name with the strongest backing among supporters. Currently without a club, the 66-year- has recently reiterated his desire to return to River. 

But his candidacy faces internal resistance, partly because of his past disagreements with former president Rodolfo D’Onofrio and ex-sporting director Enzo Francescoli.

Crespo is another option, although bringing him home to Argentina would be difficult. He only joined Mexican side Atlas last month and is under contract until 2028. 

Solari offers a different profile. The former Real Madrid first-team coach is now part of the Spanish club’s sporting structure and has previously been considered by River as an option.

The 50-year-old, who previously coached Club América, has strong links to Núñez but leaving his position in Madrid would be a major obstacle.

Matías Almeyda, currently in charge of Mexican side Monterrey, is another familiar name. He guided River back to the top flight in 2012 after their disastrous relegation, but appears to be further down the list.

River’s directors say they are keen to avoid rushing into an appointment as they seek stability after losing two coaches this year already.

– TIMES/AFP/NA