Mariano Andújar was one of the first options for River when the club started looking for a goalkeeper to replace Germán Lux at the end of 2017. However, the negotiations for the 34-year-old player did not reach a successful conclusion, and it was Franco Armani who joined River Plate.

After the transfer market and the resumption of the Superliga, Andújar himself admitted that he wanted to go to the team led by Marcelo Gallardo but couldn't. "I said and did everything I had to do to come to River behind the doors, but the club (Estudiantes) defended its position," the goalkeeper admitted in an interview with Súper Mitre Deportivo. He also acknowledged, "I think my chance of playing for a big club is very far away today. I would have liked it, but I don't regret it."

In addition, the goalkeeper assured that he still dreams of being one of the three goalkeepers for the Argentine national team in Russia: "I still maintain the illusion of playing in the World Cup because the third goalkeeper has rotated. Given my past and present, I can be called up."