Martín Demichelis stepped down as River Plate head coach on Sunday following his team’s 1-0 victory against Sarmiento. The former Bayern Munich and Manchester City defender first arrived to coach his favorite club in November 2022 and leaves with 51 wins in 86 games and three titles.

“I want to be as open as possible. I want you to know I was, am, and will be a River fan,” said Demichelis in the press conference after his final game, while also letting it slide that the decision to leave isn’t entirely his. 

“[The club] is above everyone, no matter what anyone wishes or desires.”

The head coach — who made his professional debut as a player with the Millonario in September 2001 — couldn’t contain his tears on Sunday as a wonder hit by youngster Franco Mastantuono saved River in the 86th. The fans put on the perfect farewell as the crowd of over 80,000 sang “Micho es de River, de River de verdad” (Micho belongs to River, a true River man). The song, however, usually ends with “from River he can’t leave.”

The official announcement came via a short statement the club made on Saturday. River claimed Demichelis’ departure was “a decision taken in agreement with club authorities” and thanked him for his “professionalism, commitment, and respect for the jersey and the three titles obtained.”

Despite the fans’ farewell on Sunday, the writing had been on the wall for some time. While team form was never too consistent under Demichelis, it was the lack of results that provided the final blow. A 2-1 loss to Godoy Cruz on Wednesday and a 2-2 tie at home against Lanús, in addition to a 2-0 defeat to Deportivo Riestra in June and a historic Copa Argentina elimination against second division team Temperley in May, proved to be to much for Demichelis to withstand.

The exit isn’t without controversy. Demichelis’s wife, actress Evangelina Anderson, took to social media to vent over what she perceived as injustices committed against his husband. “Truth always comes into the light,” she wrote in an Instagram story. “They tried to sell so many lies while you coached […]. Time always puts things in their place.”

Demichelis’ stint at the helm of the Núñez club was never far from controversy. From the start, he was tasked with the unenviable mission of replacing the all-conquering Marcelo Gallardo. The “Muñeco” (the doll) had become the club’s most successful manager in a stint between 2014 and 2022, which included River’s historic win against traditional rival Boca Juniors in the 2018 Copa Libertadores final.

With plenty of doubts hanging over his head in what was his first job as a top-tier head coach, Demichelis attempts to lead the renovation effort led to clashes with key men of the Gallardo era, most notably veteran midfielder Enzo Pérez.

A strong first semester in 2023 saw Demichelis’s River lift the Liga Profesional, but the team faltered in the second half of the year, with a Copa de la Liga elimination and, most importantly, a Copa Libertadores exit in the round of 16. 

In 2024, a second Copa de la Liga elimination, this time at the hands of Boca Juniors started to break what little concordance had been built with the fans.

Demichelis’s stint ends with 51 wins, 18 draws, 17 losses, and three titles: the 2023 Liga Profesional, the 2023 Trofeo de Campeones and the 2024 Supercopa Argentina.