On Thursday evening, two sided at opposite ends of Argentina’s Primera Division will lock horns at Estadio Guillermo Laza.
As we head into Matchday 5 of the Second Phase, 23rd-placed Deportivo Riestra find themselves six points behind fifth-placed River Plate, who sit one point shy of the summit.
In this preview, Forebet covers all the key stats, trends and analysis head of Thursday’s clash. Continue reading to discover what our predictive analytics model forecasts.
🎯⚽️🔜 Deportivo Riestra. pic.twitter.com/Wli1VHczUn— River Plate (@RiverPlate) June 11, 2024
🎯⚽️🔜 Deportivo Riestra. pic.twitter.com/Wli1VHczUn
Let’s start by looking at the hosts, Deportivo Riestra, who head into this one on a three-game losing run following a series of below-par performances.
After enduring a 2-0 defeat against Estudiantes, Deportivo Riestra lost to Rosario Central by the same scoreline before suffering a 1-0 defeat against Racing Club last time out.
Not only have Deportivo Riestra lost each of their last three games, but they have also failed to score, meaning they possess the division’s joint-worst offensive record.
Let’s not forget that Deportivo Riestra finished third from bottom in Group A during the First Phase after winning just three of their 14 matches.
As for River Plate, they head into Thursday’s clash on the back of a 3-1 victory over Tigre, courtesy of a hat-trick from Miguel Borja.
Managed by former Manchester City defender Martin Demichelis, River Plate have now won three of their four clashes since the start of the Second Phase.
When you look at the bigger picture, River Plate have only lost three of their last 26 Primera Division matches, helping them finish atop Group A during the first phase.
That said, Deportivo Riestra can take confidence from the fact that River Plate have managed to win just one of their previous eight away league outings.
Head-to-head: Deportivo Riestra and River Plate’s first-ever meeting came back in February, with the latter securing a comfortable 3-0 victory.
Despite that clash taking place at Estadio Guillermo Laza, River Plate racked up 71% possession and 19 shots, limiting the hosts to three attempts on target.
Team news: Deportivo Riestra are still without long-term injury absentee Tomas Villoldo, who has not made an appearance since March.
On the flip side, River Plate’s injury list features Ramiro Funes Mori, Manuel Lanzini, Pity Martinez and Daniel Zabala.
While River Plate have started the campaign in impressive form, Deportivo Riestra remain at the bottom end of the table following a poor run of results.
Accordingly, Forebet predicts that River Plate will score over 1.5 goals and keep a clean sheet on their way to defeating Deportivo Riestra.