Boca skips Buenos Aires, flies straight to Mendoza after knocking out Velez to prep for Gimnasia

They didn't even stop in Buenos Aires. Boca knocked out Velez on penalties in the Copa Argentina and, still in their travel gear, flew straight from Cordoba to Mendoza to dive right into the Clausura Tournament week. No long celebrations, no resting at home: the focus had already shifted, and there was no time to waste.

On Saturday, starting at 4:30 p.m. and broadcast on ESPN Premium, Vasco Arruabarrena's side visits Gimnasia at the Estadio Victor Legrotaglie. This isn't the first time Boca has pulled this logistical move either: they'd already done it earlier this year, skipping the round trip to Buenos Aires when the schedule got tight between midweek and weekend matches.

What did catch people off guard was the reception. The moment the bus pulled up outside the hotel where the squad will stay in the Cuyo city, a crowd of Boca fans was already waiting. And the players didn't play it cool: led by Leandro Paredes, they stepped off the bus and started taking photos and signing autographs as if the match were the next day instead of three days away. One kid even squeezed through the crowd and got several players to sign his jersey, a moment that quickly went viral on social media.

There is, however, one absence causing some concern: Paredes finished Wednesday's match with a muscle strain and won't be available to face Gimnasia. Even so, the captain didn't want to miss out on the team's time together and traveled anyway, joining his teammates ahead of a match that looks crucial for both the Clausura standings and the Annual Table.

A season with fronts open on every side

Boca arrives at this matchup with morale high and several goals still within reach. The team remains alive in the Copa Argentina quarterfinals and the CONMEBOL Sudamericana quarterfinals, all while fighting for position in the Clausura. That's no small task: it means an important match every single week, with almost no room to let up.

That's why the decision to bypass Buenos Aires isn't just a logistical whim, it's a way of managing energy and time in a calendar that offers no breathing room. Gimnasia, playing at home, will demand full concentration from the opening whistle, and Boca knows it: they arrived in Mendoza with their heads already in that game, even as the taste of that penalty shootout win still lingered.