With Matías Kranevitter in Europe signing his contract with Atlético Madrid and Ramiro Funes Mori already poised to complete his move to Everton, River Plate supporters can breathe a sigh of relief at the news that although certain key players are on their way out, Marcelo Gallardo has put pen to paper on a new deal which will keep him in charge at the Monumental until December 2017.

The 39-year-old has rapidly established himself as one of the brightest young managers in world football after claiming as many major trophies as he has years coaching. One year with Nacional brought with it the Uruguayan league title and since replacing Ramón Díaz at River, the man they call El Muñeco has captured the Copa Sudamericana, the Recopa Sudamericana and the Copa Libertadores. As is always the concern for South American clubs, when a player or manager shines too brightly they are inevitably attracted over the ocean to Europe, but Gallardo has ended such speculation for now with an extension on his contract with River.

The new deal will run until December 2017 and after signing with president Rodolfo D’onofrio, Gallardo told reporters: “I am very happy. It is a great honour and responsibility. The idea is to continue improving.

“From the beginning, the club gave me everything. We will try to continue shaping what we do day by day and if possible, improve. It provides us with a greater challenge. We are not afraid, but know that it is not easy to repeat what has been achieved this year.

“The River supporters have enjoyed it. We believe that with the president and the board we can continue to grow. The team is going to reinvent itself. There are players that will come and go and we must adapt ourselves and be competitive.”

This period of rebuilding is already underway with several key members of the squad over the past year already leaving and although young Matías Kranevitter will remain until the end of the year there will be continued change to this historic River side. However, in Marcelo Gallardo, Los Millonarios are in good hands. Despite his inexperience, he has already shown himself to be an astute tactician and also an excellent man-manager.

Taking over Ramón Díaz’s Torneo Final title winning side, Gallardo managed to improve them whilst bringing through several young players but also showed the ability to adapt his tactics en route to lifting the Copa Libertadores. Additionally, he built an incredibly strong squad mentality and successfully managed the egos of some potentially difficult characters, like Teo Gutiérrez and older returning legends like Fernando Cavenaghi, Lucho González and Javier Saviola when their playing time was reduced.

It is little wonder then that Gallardo is already linked with ‘bigger’ things and River president Rodolfo D’onofrio is in doubt that Muñeco will be a huge success. When asked if he thought his head coach had a future in Europe or with the Argentina national team, D’onofrio incredulously replied: “Do you have any doubts? I don’t. Any man in the whole world realizes the ability that he has.“

The news is a boost for River after a defeat to Estudiantes at the weekend that saw them lose further ground to rivals Boca Juniors in the title race. There is still a great deal to play for in 2015 with not only the league but also an opportunity to defend their Copa Sudamericana title before the Club World Cup in Japan. Marcelo Gallardo has already immortalised himself among River supporters but don’t bet against him adding even more titles to River’s burgeoning trophy cabinet before he departs.