River Beat Banfield to Move Past Copa Blow in Leo Ponzio’s Coaching Debut

Leonardo Ponzio’s first game in charge of River Plate produced the response the club needed after a painful midweek elimination. River won 3-2 away to Banfield in an emotional seventh round of the Torneo Clausura.

Ángel Correa delivered a standout performance, while Thiago Almada opened his scoring account in River’s colors. The victory helped the team recover from its Copa Sudamericana defeat to Independiente Santa Fe, a result that ended Eduardo Coudet’s time as coach and brought Ponzio, previously the club’s youth-team coordinator, into an interim role.

The round also brought a heavy defeat for Independiente. Gimnasia y Esgrima de Mendoza won 3-0, sending Jadson Viera’s team off the field to loud whistles. The reaction came amid a tense political atmosphere and growing impatience among supporters ahead of the club’s end-of-year elections.

Argentinos Juniors beat Aldosivi 2-1 at home, while Boca Juniors opened the round with a late 1-0 win over Lanús. Saturday featured several draws: Riestra and Vélez, and Huracán and Estudiantes de Río Cuarto, both finished 1-1. Atlético Tucumán and Belgrano drew 0-0, as did Talleres and Central Córdoba, a match followed by Jorge Sampaoli’s resignation as Talleres coach. Gimnasia La Plata provided the other notable result, winning 2-1 away to Rosario Central.