Boca lost 1-0 with Racing in the semi-finals of the Closing Tournament 2025 y Claudio Ubeda was the big target for La Bombonera after the elimination.
Xeneize played an acceptable first half against La Academia, although he practically did not kick the goal. In the second stage, the local team He went out, let Racing grow and was a victim of Adrián Maravilla Martínez’s return to goal.
A Boca without answers, on and off the field
The whispers were the worst ghosts for Milton Giménez, who had a terrible game and could not recover his scoring instinct that he had shown at the beginning of the season.
With a 9 broken in confidence and the other without prominence, The Giménez-Merentiel duo could not even tickle Facundo Cambeses.
The Boca hope was supported by two possible scenarios: the appearance of an angelic play by the world champion or the breaking of torpor the vertigo of Changuito. But neither Leandro Paredes did magic nor Exequiel Zeballos had time to take charge of the game.
With speed, imbalance and, above all, with his unpredictable actions, Zeballos had been winning the duel against Mura when something unusual happened.
“What the fuck is he doing?”was the phrase of a fan that summed up the feeling of the entire stadium. The midfield sign put the number 7 in red (Zeballos) and the number 20 in green (Velasco). So, the DT, who had not moved the bank until that moment, He took out Boca’s most dangerous player to put in a midfielder without shooting.
“God’s plans are perfect,” said the T-shirt Zeballos had under his shirt. But the television shot he dreamed of to celebrate a goal came with his frustrated face, ready to watch the rest of the game from below the preferential seats.
Whistling. Abuse. Petrified faces. La Bombonera received the first modification between rejection and disbelief.
The party was crying out for a change. But not that one. Zeballos did not shine, but at least he promised something to the xeneizes.
THEY COULD NOT BELIEVE IT: Pay attention to the reaction of the Boca fans in the change of Changuito Zeballos.
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— ESPN Argentina (@ESPNArgentina) December 7, 2025
ATTENTION TO THE GESTURE OF WALLS WITH THE CHANGE OF CHANGO ZEBALLOS!! THE WORLD CHAMPION WHO HAS A MOUTH DID NOT LIKE IT AT ALL!! pic.twitter.com/RQIaIcaEJx
— SportsCenter (@SC_ESPN) December 8, 2025
From that moment on, everything broke: Boca lost concentration, Racing grew and People’s relationship with Ubeda suddenly broke down.
The minutes that remained only added up confusion. Gustavo Costas’ men dedicated themselves to cooling down the game and the locals entered into despair. Right there, Wonder smelled blood and he ate both the center backs and Agustín Marchesín.
With the clock as an enemy, Boca needed a goal and no longer had anyone who could do it. Meanwhile, Ander Herrera y Edinson Cavani were spectators from the other side of the lime line, one more time.
To close the repertoire of inexplicable decisions, in added time, Ubeda brought in Rodrigo Battaglia by Milton Delgado and ended up disconcerting everyone.
“You gave away the game”, “With you we played with one against”, “You have to go now, Ubeda”. These are some of the phrases that came down from the blue and yellow steps of Brandsen.
The coach left whistled, insulted and even accused by some fans of “being a Racing fan.”
Ubeda explained his decisions: Is the break with the fan irreversible?
The most anticipated word after Racing’s 1-0 win over Boca was Claudio Ubeda, total protagonist in the xeneize elimination.
The Xeneizes fans, and the public in general, were surprised by some of the decisions that the coach made, among them, not removing Milton Giménez, not putting in the “international reinforcements that were being reserved” and, above all, removing the most damaging player from the field.
“Edi warmed up, but suffered discomfort in his lower back”the coach confessed in a conference to explain why Edinson Cavani did not enter. “It was not the time to put Ander in”said the coach about Herrera.
How did the coach excuse himself for the most controversial moment of the night? “Gestures of fatigue” in Zeballos.
The technical director’s explanations seem to be brief to the great disappointment of the fan, who, in the heat of the moment, chose him as the person most responsible for the elimination. We will have to wait to see how people will react to lowering their heart rate and listening to it.
Boca seemed organized for the next season, with hopes on the rise, and received an unexpected shock. Once again, he was left “recalculating” and with many unknowns looking ahead to what’s coming.
Racing eliminated Boca and gave him more than a painful elimination at home. In addition to making his end of the year bitter and erasing his dream of the title, added a problem to Juan Román Riquelme, who will have to look for a coach for 2026 or assume the political cost of ratifying Ubeda, who La Bombonera let go of his hand.
