Both Gonzalo Montiel and Matías Kranevitter were cleared to return to action during Sunday’s training session and are expected to be included in River Plate’s squad for Tuesday’s match against Barcelona SC of Guayaquil at El Monumental.

What happened to the River Plate players?

The defender recovered from a calf strain in his left leg suffered during the goalless draw against Deportivo Riestra in the domestic league, just days before the FIFA international break. He was also unable to travel with the Argentine national team. Meanwhile, the midfielder had been dealing with a muscle tear in his right quadriceps sustained during River’s 2–0 win over Ciudad de Bolívar at the Estadio Madre de Ciudades in Santiago del Estero in the Copa Argentina.

River Plate’s possible starting lineup

Taking into account player recoveries and squad rotation, River’s potential starting XI is: Franco Armani; Gonzalo Montiel, Lucas Martínez Quarta, Paulo Díaz, Marcos Acuña; Rodrigo Aliendro, Enzo Pérez, Maxi Meza; Franco Mastantuono, Facundo Colidio, and Miguel Borja.

Raphael Claus will officiate the match, leading an all-Brazilian crew that includes Rodrigo Correa and Nailton Souza as assistant referees, Rodrigo Pereira as the fourth official, Rodolpho Toski in the VAR room, and Rodrigo Nunes serving as AVAR.

It’s worth noting that River will be unable to have home fans in attendance due to a CONMEBOL sanction imposed after the use of pyrotechnics during the pre-match reception against Atlético Mineiro in October 2024, in the return leg of the Copa Libertadores semifinals.

The last time River played a Libertadores match behind closed doors was on August 11, 2021, when they lost 1–0 to Atlético Mineiro in the first leg of the quarterfinals. Ironically, the goal scorer that night was Ignacio Fernández — now back in a River Plate shirt.