The elimination that Boca Juniors suffered at La Bombonera against Alianza Lima in the preliminary round of the Copa Libertadores left many names marked within the ‘xeneize’ team. One of them is Alan Velasco for missing the decisive penalty. But another, evidently, is coach Fernando Gago, whose position on the Boca Juniors bench could be in serious jeopardy.

Is Gago not ready to coach Boca?

Gago cannot be criticized for not being proactive in trying to correct the mistakes from the first match in Peru. In fact, he abandoned his usual 4-3-3 formation to try the classic 4-3-1-2 of the legendary Carlos Bianchi. However, it was not enough to secure Boca Juniors' qualification, and they ended up losing in penalties.

After a period of great instability on the Boca Juniors bench, Riquelme decided to bring in a homegrown player like Fernando Gago, who had been doing a great job in his early coaching career at Aldosivi, Racing, and Chivas at just 38 years old. However, the pressure of La Bombonera is different.

La Bombonera’s judgment against Rosario Central

Gago has been the coach of Boca Juniors for only 135 days, with a mixed record of 11 wins, six draws, and five losses. This situation, after suffering an unexpected elimination against Alianza Lima, which will prevent them from competing in the current edition of the Copa Libertadores, has started to raise doubts about his future at La Bombonera.

During the match and once it ended, many Boca Juniors fans expressed their dissatisfaction, calling on Riquelme to fire Fernando Gago. He, for now, has stated that he feels “strong enough to continue.” However, La Bombonera will make the final decision in the upcoming match against Rosario Central, which leads Group B of the Argentine League, where they remain unbeaten.