Leonardo Ponzio Named River Plate's Interim Coach in Club's Worst Crisis in Years

Just a few months ago, Leonardo Ponzio was posing for photos with River Plate's seventh Copa Libertadores trophy in hand, in his role as a club ambassador. Now he has to go find it a different way: standing on the touchline, with River in the worst stretch of its recent history and no room left for doubt.

The club announced this Thursday that the 44-year-old from Santa Fe would take over as interim coach following the exit of Eliseo "Cacique" Coudet, who left after River's elimination against Once Caldas in the Copa Sudamericana. According to sources close to the club's leadership, the plan is for Ponzio to remain in charge through the end of the year, with his first experience as a head coach to be evaluated based on results.

Club president Stefano Di Carlo was the one to back the decision:

"We believe he has the qualities to manage this transitional situation."Stefano Di Carlo

A demanding schedule right out of the gate

There's no easing into it: on Sunday, August 30, at 7:00 p.m., River will visit Banfield at the Florencio Sola Stadium for matchday seven of the Torneo Clausura. The numbers are alarming: River has won just one game in nine outings this half of the season, and Banfield sits second to last in Zone B.

A week later comes Ponzio's first match at the Monumental, hosting Independiente Rivadavia, currently the leader of the aggregate table. After that comes a stretch with fewer games packed together: a road trip to face Atletico Tucuman, his home debut against Huracan, and, following the FIFA international break, matches against Sarmiento, Estudiantes de Rio Cuarto, Belgrano and Racing, ahead of the Superclasico against Boca Juniors at La Bombonera, set for November 1. The Clausura will wrap up in Mar del Plata against Aldosivi, the same team that eliminated River from the Copa Argentina weeks earlier.

The Libertadores, this half-season's obsession

After eleven consecutive years playing in the Copa Libertadores without interruption between 2015 and 2025, River missed out in 2026 and now runs a serious risk of missing it again. With the Copa Argentina and the Sudamericana already out of reach, only two paths remain: win the Torneo Clausura or finish among the top three in the annual table.

Neither looks simple right now. In the Clausura, River sits 14th in Zone B with just 4 points from 6 matches. In the annual standings, the club is 11th, one point off the Sudamericana qualification zone and seven points behind Velez, the last team currently in a Libertadores spot, with seven direct rivals in between.

Ponzio, who won 17 titles as a player wearing the River jersey (more than anyone else in the club's history), has no doubt secured his place in the hearts of the fans. But whether he stays on in 2027 will depend entirely on what he achieves during this transition.

He'll be backed by a coaching staff with familiar faces around the club: Marcelo Escudero and Christian Manfredi as assistant coaches, and Cristian Segura and Nicolas Paolorossi as fitness trainers. The new staff already ran its first training session this Thursday at the Cantilo training complex, with Banfield already in sight.