Arruabarrena was critical of Boca’s level after the defeat in Chile

Boca once again came under scrutiny for its performance, this time after the defeat to O'Higgins in Chile. Although the team managed to advance to the round of 16 of the Copa Sudamericana, Arruabarrena offered a harsh assessment of the match and did not hide his concern about the image the squad left.

"I'm happy to have qualified, but not with the way we played," Arruabarrena said.

The quote sums up the mood around the xeneize side: the international objective was achieved, but the team’s play still fails to convince. In the coach’s view, qualification is not enough to mask a performance that left too many doubts in the competition’s recent stretch.

A place in the next round with a warning attached

The focus of the day was not on full celebration, but on the contrast between the overall result and the footballing impressions. Boca managed to get among the best in the continental tournament, but the loss to O'Higgins exposed shortcomings that the coaching staff did not overlook.

Arruabarrena was clear in separating the achieved objective from the game analysis. He did not stop at reading the result and pointed directly to the team’s level, a stance that makes it clear the coaching staff believes there is still plenty to correct.

"At this rate it will be very hard for us to win," was the coach’s message in his self-criticism.

That statement works as an internal warning for the squad, at a time when every match serves to gauge responses, fine-tune mechanisms and rebuild confidence.

What the coaching staff’s analysis left behind

• Boca qualified for the round of 16 of the Copa Sudamericana.
• The team lost to O'Higgins in Chile.
• Arruabarrena valued the result, but questioned the way the team played.
• The coaching staff believes that, with this version, the xeneize will find winning very difficult.

The message also opens the door to a review of the squad’s current situation, in a context where the collective performance fell short of expectations. Without inventing names or moves that were not reported, the concrete fact is that the coach chose to speak from self-criticism rather than from euphoria over qualification.

A present that demands immediate answers

At a stage where the demands keep multiplying, Boca needs to turn qualification into a visible improvement on the pitch. The coach’s words leave a clear reading: the team cannot be satisfied with advancing if it cannot sustain a stronger approach.

Public self-criticism often serves as a starting point for changes in tone in day-to-day work. In this case, Arruabarrena made it clear that there is room to keep competing, but also that the level shown in Chile forces a quick response.

For now, the balance leaves one certainty: Boca remains in the race in the Copa Sudamericana, although its coach has already warned that the road will become more difficult if the team does not improve its performance.