Leonardo Ponzio will face a Superclasico from a different place: this time he will be in charge of River as technical director. In the run-up to the match against Boca, Jonatan Maidana, his former teammate during one of the institution's most successful stages, supported him and shared his feelings about
the game.
Maidana's support for Ponzio before the Superclasico
Maidana and Ponzio have shared 172 games with the River jersey since 2012. Both were protagonists of the golden era of the team led by Marcelo Gallardo and were part of the squads that won the Copas Libertadores in 2015 and 2018
.
After the arrival of Ponzio to the technical direction, there was speculation that Maidana would join his body of work, although in the end it did not materialize. The current member of the Senior Team of the “Millionaire” referred to the club's present and stressed the importance of the attitude to face the classic
.
“In football, sometimes the ball comes in and sometimes it doesn't, but the important thing is the attitude with which you go out on the court and I think the team has enough attitude and eggs to play this game,” he said.
How to experience the preview of a Super Classic
The former defender also recalled the sensations he experienced before playing a match of this nature. As he explained, the expectation and attention generated by the party cause special tension, even for those who have experience in this type of commitment
.
“Nothing, ever. Obviously not that. A little nervous perhaps because of how nice it is to live that kind of game. A lot of people are watching you and you always want to do things right,” Maidana said, referring to the pressure of playing
against Boca.
Maidana's advice for facing the match against Boca
Finally, Maidana shared what message he would give to himself before a Superclassic. His reflection focused on maintaining concentration, assuming commitment and maintaining intensity throughout the match: “The same thing you repeated when you played. Put intensity, commitment into it, be attentive to every detail and every move of the game, and then try to do your best
.”
