“Thank you for everything, my captain”: Ponzio receives a hero’s welcome at the Monumental

Leonardo Ponzio’s first appearance as River Plate coach at the Monumental brought an especially strong response from the club’s supporters. When the stadium announcer called his name before the match against Independiente Rivadavia, the applause grew louder than for the other players and guests.

The fans displayed a banner in the lower Sivori stand reading, “Thank you for everything, my captain.” They also unfurled a large image of Ponzio from the Belgrano Alta section, along with a replica of the No. 23 shirt he wore in 2018, the year he won his second Copa Libertadores with River.

The crowd also backed Thiago Almada, Nicolás Otamendi, and Marcos Acuña. But the reception was not positive for everyone. Lucas Martínez Quarta and Rafael Santos Borré drew criticism after missing penalties in River’s shootout loss to Independiente Santa Fe in the Copa Sudamericana round of 16.

Martínez Quarta’s situation was particularly difficult. Despite River’s win over Banfield in Ponzio’s first match, the centre-back again performed poorly and had attracted interest from Genoa and Qatar’s Al Sadd. Ponzio pushed for him to stay and selected him to start, leaving the heavily criticized defender under pressure to turn his form around.

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Thank you for everything, my captain