The dream of a third Copa Libertadores win for Marcelo Gallardo will have to wait for now. River Plate tied 0-0 at home to Brazil’s Atlético Mineiro in the semifinals on Tuesday and lost the series 3-0 on aggregate. 

The Millonario came into Tuesday’s second leg of the matchup knowing it needed a perfect night. The 3-0 loss away in Belo Horizonte meant it was going to be an uphill battle for Gallardo’s side: anything short of a four-goal victory meant taking the series to penalties or elimination.

But before the game, the stadium gave a presentation that River fans are boasting will go into the history books. A packed Monumental hosted a vintage Copa Libertadores team welcoming, with a mirage of fireworks and flares accompanying the over 84,000 crowd’s singing.

Mineiro wasn’t daunted however. With River dominating the ball for most of the match, the Brazilian side led by Argentine coach Gabriel Milito formed a tight defense and denied the Millonario any big chances.

River took 16 shots during the first half, but only two were on target. In fact, the Brazilian side had the biggest goal scoring chance when striker Deyverson Silva took advantage of a mistake by midfielder Matías Kranevitter and went one-on-one against goalkeeper Franco Armani, who was able to snatch the ball away from him.

Early into the second half, it was once again Armani that saved River, as a shot outside the box by midfielder Gustavo Scarpa grazed off the goalkeeper’s gloves and into the crossbar. 

Gallardo’s side kept his dominance, and the introduction of youngsters Claudio Echeverri and Franco Mastantuono gave the team more offensive flair, but it proved too little too late.

“We were in the contest, we played the match we wanted,” said Gallardo in the press conference after the game. “The team pushed all the way until the end, but we didn’t score our chances and that was key. Can’t win without the goals.”

The joy is only Brazilian?

River will miss the chance to become the third team to win the Copa Libertadores at home since 2016. The competition switched to a single game final in 2019 after decades of two matches, one on each home turf. The final venue is picked ahead of time, meaning local teams know that they will have the advantage if they make it to the finals. Fluminense has so far been the only team that has been able to do this when they won in 2023.

It may not be only Argentina that misses out on the Copa Libertadores final, but the Rio de la Plata basin entirely. Uruguayan giants Peñarol are hosting Botafogo, another Brazilian side. in the other semifinal on Wednesday. However, with a 5-0 first leg result, the odds aren’t favoring the home side.

Should Botafogo cement its win, it will be the fourth all-Brazilian Copa Libertadores final since 2020, and the sixth Brazilian winner since 2019.