It was a solid debut for River Plate at the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup, taking a 3-1 win over Japanese rivals Urawa Red Diamonds on Tuesday. The team coached by Marcelo Gallardo now leads Group E and could be on to the quarterfinals with just another win.

River flying high

The Millonario is one of the favorites to advance after getting drawn as a seeded team into the group with Urawa, Mexico’s Monterrey, and Italian side Inter Milan. Gallardo’s team came out firing on all cylinders, controlling the game from the get-go. They scored their first goal just 11 minutes in, as striker Facundo Colidio headed in a cross from defender Marcos Acuña nearly unopposed.

As the game developed, the Japanese outfit started to find solutions for River’s attacks, and Gallardo’s team would have to wait until the second half to increase its lead. Striker Sebastián Driussi took advantage of a misunderstanding between defender Marius Hoibraten and goalkeeper Shusaku Nishikawa and headed home River’s second goal. 

However, it wasn’t all good news. The 29-year-old player fell at an awkward angle after scoring and quickly had to be subbed off with an ankle injury. He is now expected to miss the remainder of the tournament.

The match seemed under the Millonario’s control when Acuña fouled forward Takuro Kaneko inside the box at the 55-minute mark, leaving German referee Felix Zwayer no choice but to give a penalty. Striker Yusuje Matsuo scored to make it 2-1.

That would be all for Urawa Red Diamonds, as River scored again through another aerial play. In the 72nd minute, a cross by Acuña from a corner found midfielder Maximiliano Meza at the near post, who headed the ball in to score the deciding 3-1.

Gearing up for a tough game

After the game, Gallardo highlighted the importance of the win in a context where matches have often proven tighter than expected.

“It was a nervous atmosphere during build-up,” he said. “It’s key to secure the three points. [Urawa] is a very physical, very organized team; we knew that. We hit them at the right time, and that gave us some peace of mind.” 

The Millonario coach admitted his team needs to improve if they’re going to make a deep tournament run but felt there was “margin for growth” in the upcoming games.

They’ll do well to take their level up a notch, as they’re set to face Mexico’s Monterrey in their next game, who took a crucial 1-1 tie with Inter Milan after River’s game.

“It’ll be a key game for us,” said Gallardo. “The ticket to quarters will be decided there.”

His words were echoed by defender Sergio Ramos, the former Real Madrid star who currently plays for Monterrey and who scored the Mexican team’s goal.

“We know it’ll be a tough match against River,” he said. “They’ll fight until the last minute. Argentine blood is like that; they battle you constantly.”

The former Real Madrid and PSG man, who remains a formidable opponent at 39, said that Monterrey will go all in to “try and get a win so it doesn’t depend all on the last game.”

What does River need to secure a quarterfinals spot?

Group E in the FIFA Club World Cup looks wide open after Tuesday’s results. River’s win sees it climb to the first spot with three points, followed by Inter and Monterrey, with one point each after their 1-1 tie.

The Millonario will face Monterrey on Saturday, June 21, in the Rose Bowl stadium at 10 p.m. A win will see them secure a quarterfinals berth, as they would reach the final group stage game with six points. A tie or a loss will leave them needing to better Monterrey’s final matchday result against Urawa Red Diamonds or secure a better goal average than the Mexican side.

River’s last matchup of the group stage will be against Inter on Wednesday, June 25, at Lumen Field, at 10 p.m. Provided Gallardo’s team reaches the game having virtually qualified, the game will only decide the group positions if Inter beats Urawa.

All schedules are in Argentina time.