Buenos Aires, November 16 (NA) — River Plate must secure an away victory this Sunday against Vélez and will then have to wait for Estudiantes de La Plata to do the same later, starting at 20:15, in their home match against Argentinos Juniors. According to what Noticias Argentinas was able to find out, with one round left in the regular phase of the local championship, the Núñez squad is fighting the 'Bicho' for a spot in the playoff for the continent's most prestigious tournament. Although the 'Millionaire' team had built a significant points cushion from the first half of the season, the recent poor run of six defeats in the last seven matches, with the special addition of one of them being a 2-0 loss in the Superclásico to Boca Juniors, has caused the squad led by Marcelo Gallardo to be in a Copa Sudamericana position. However, the Núñez squad still has a chance to qualify for the international tournament, although it will depend on a series of results going in their favor. The first of these will be to achieve a victory against Vélez Sarsfield at the José Amalfitani and to wait for a defeat or a draw from the 'Bicho' in their away match against Estudiantes de La Plata to secure a playoff spot. If they suffer a defeat against Fortín or fail to finish among the top three in the general classification, they will have to wait for the champion of the local tournament to be decided. If Rosario Central (1st), Boca (2nd), or currently Argentinos Juniors (3rd) win the title, they will free up an additional spot, and the 'Millionaire' will play the playoff, provided they finish in fourth place.
