River Plate coach Diego Simeone believes his side deserved the three points in their 1-1 draw with Colon de Santa Fe in their Apertura Championship opener on Sunday.

The Argentine Clausura champions came from behind to draw 1-1 with Colon de Santa Fe in a highly contested match that River Plate could easily have won.

"We could have won the match. The balance was positive. We demonstrated that we have lots of options, but we have to keep on working," he admitted.

Simeone insists they will need time to accommodate the absences of three of last season's key players, Ariel Ortega, Juan Pablo Carrizo and Sebastian Abreu, but he thinks his side is on the right track.

"Other players will have to take these responsibilities, but I'm happy with the way the team played," he affirmed.

The former Atletico Madrid midfielder was pleased with the performance of Uruguayan reinforcement Robert Flores, who scored River's equalizer. "Flores proved why he will be important for us this season."

Diego Simeone he Also stated that this year the rivalry between Boca going to be very harsh on Sky going to be a amazing for their so called passionate fans.