Alejo Macelli

Central Defender - Rampla Juniors
10 Jul 2027
Saturday
Process

Marked for Alejo Macelli

47 Edition

The Rampla Juniors Herald

21 Jun 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Match

4 matches without a win for Rampla Juniors

The run now stands at 4, and the questions being asked around Rampla Juniors are no longer polite ones.

Squad

Tempers go at Rampla Juniors

Augusto Scarone was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Match

3 matches without a goal for Rampla Juniors

The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 3 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.

Squad

Words at Rampla Juniors training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Sebastián Gularte is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Squad

No hiding place for Facundo Umpiérrez

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Facundo Umpiérrez, and the manager let it.

Market

Alberto Eiraldi placed on the list

Rampla Juniors have made Alberto Eiraldi available for transfer. A career at this club is over in all but paperwork.

In brief

Back issues
45 Edition

The Cerro Post

7 Jun 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Cerro sell their best player to Rampla Juniors

$780.0K is a serious amount of money and it does not play centre-forward. Everybody in the dressing room knows who used to be looked at when it went wrong.

Squad

Yhojan Díaz breaks a bone — 86 days out

Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 86 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.

Market

Iván Valenzuela hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Cerro can pretend not to have heard.

The terraces

Supporters turn on the $780.0K sale of Alejo Macelli

He is going to Rampla Juniors, the club has $780.0K it did not have on Friday, and the phone-ins have already decided how they feel about that. Selling well and selling somebody they loved are not the same skill.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Cristian Barros

Successful dribbles: 23. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

Tempers go at Cerro

Cristian Barros was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Match

The run at home goes on for Cerro

9 matches unbeaten here. Every visiting manager is asked about it in the week before, which is precisely why it keeps going.

The terraces

Cerro supporters have found a favourite in Alejandro Severo

There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 21-year-old it feels ownership of. Alejandro Severo has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.

Match

Cerro find a way past Albion

Albion made Cerro work for it, but the scoreboard read 1‑0 at the end and the table does not ask how.

In brief

45 Edition

The Rampla Juniors Herald

7 Jun 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Market

$780.0K — a new record at Rampla Juniors

No footballer has ever cost this club more, and the number will be read out every time he misplaces a pass for the next two years.

The terraces

Anger at Rampla Juniors spills outside the ground

It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.

Market

Emiliano Aires puts it in writing

“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Rampla Juniors, and it is not being withdrawn.

Match

Rampla Juniors sink to position 12

16 points, and a fixture list that is running out. The mathematics are not yet cruel, but they are no longer kind.

Squad

Nicolás Royón in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Rampla Juniors this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

The terraces

Rampla Juniors spend $780.0K on the signing the town wanted

It is the rarest sequence in football: supporters ask for something, and the club goes and does it. $780.0K for Alejo Macelli, and for one week nobody is complaining about anything.

Match

A bad afternoon for Rampla Juniors against Fenix

0‑2 to Fenix, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.

Player ratings

Sebastián Cal runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 19. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Market

Eyes on Juan Raffaelli again

The phone has started ringing about Juan Raffaelli again, and this time the name on the line is Artigas. Rampla Juniors are listening politely and promising nothing.

In brief

44 Edition

The Cerro Post

31 May 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Squad

A fracture rules Yhojan Díaz out for 94 days

Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Cerro will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.

Squad

Enzo Ribeiro: that is not what I was promised

“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Cerro have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.

Squad

Tempers go at Cerro

Alejo Macelli was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Cristian Barros falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

The terraces

The crowd has taken to Pablo Nongoy

At 23 he is being sung about by people twice his age, which is an affection a signing has to earn over years and a local kid gets for turning up. It is also the hardest thing in football to live up to.

Match

Cerro get the job done against Montevideo City Torque

A 2‑0 win over Montevideo City Torque, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.

In brief

42 Edition

The Cerro Post

17 May 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Squad

A knee injury of the worst kind for Agustín Miranda

25 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Cerro lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.

Squad

Yhojan Díaz breaks a bone — 109 days out

Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 109 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.

Match

11 unbeaten for Cerro

Hard to beat is not the same as winning, but 11 matches without defeat is a foundation Cerro did not have in the autumn.

Player ratings

Pablo Nongoy runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 24. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Match

No end in sight to Cerro's wait for a win

4 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Cerro has to find a result from somewhere.

Squad

Cristian Barros in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cerro this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

In brief

41 Edition

The Cerro Post

10 May 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Squad

Agustín Miranda damages knee ligaments — 33 days out

The words a physio says slowly. 33 days is what the club will announce and everybody who has heard this diagnosis before knows the number is the least of it: the knee comes back before the player does.

Squad

A fracture rules Yhojan Díaz out for 117 days

Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Cerro will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.

Match

Whatever happens, Cerro do not lose

10 games unbeaten now. Some were earned and some were survived, but a habit is forming — and habits are the hardest thing in football to play against.

Player ratings

Pablo Nongoy runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 22. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Squad

Alejo Macelli in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cerro this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Cerro training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Cristian Barros is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

In brief

40 Edition

The Cerro Post

3 May 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Yhojan Díaz breaks a bone — 127 days out

Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 127 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.

Match

Still nobody has beaten Cerro

The unbeaten run reaches 9. Some of them were wins and some were escapes, but a side that refuses to lose is a side other dressing rooms talk about.

Squad

Tempers go at Cerro

Brahian Alemán was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Words at Cerro training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Alejo Macelli is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Player ratings

One of those days for Cristian Barros

There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.08, and no argument anywhere in the ground.

Squad

No hiding place for Juan Cruz Guasone

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Juan Cruz Guasone, and the manager let it.

In brief

39 Edition

The Cerro Post

26 Apr 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Yhojan Díaz breaks a bone — 136 days out

Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 136 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.

Player ratings

Alejandro Severo, 21, plays like he has been here for years — 8.18

A mark of 8.18 means one thing beside a twenty-nine-year-old's name and something else entirely beside a 21-year-old's. Nobody at the ground needed telling which this was.

Match

Whatever happens, Cerro do not lose

8 games unbeaten now. Some were earned and some were survived, but a habit is forming — and habits are the hardest thing in football to play against.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Pablo Nongoy

Successful dribbles: 24. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

Tempers go at Cerro

Cristian Barros was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Alejo Macelli falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

Squad

No hiding place for Yonatan Irrazábal

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Yonatan Irrazábal, and the manager let it.

Player ratings

Ninety minutes of Cristian Barros at his very best

Marked 8.47. Players have careers without a single afternoon like this in them, and he has just had one in front of everybody at Cerro.

Match

Cerro and Progreso take a point apiece

It finished 2‑2, and it somehow always looked like it would. One of those afternoons where the table moves less than the tempers.

In brief

38 Edition

The Cerro Post

19 Apr 2027
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Player ratings

Pablo Nongoy runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 40. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Squad

Yhojan Díaz breaks a bone — 144 days out

Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 144 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.

Player ratings

No sign of nerves from Alejandro Severo at 21 — 8.09

The hardest thing about being 21 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Alejandro Severo did not need any: 8.09, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.

Match

Whatever happens, Cerro do not lose

7 games unbeaten now. Some were earned and some were survived, but a habit is forming — and habits are the hardest thing in football to play against.

Squad

Alejo Macelli in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cerro this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Cerro training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Cristian Barros is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

In brief

37 Edition

The Cerro Post

12 Apr 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Tempers go at Cerro

Brahian Alemán was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Match

Whatever happens, Cerro do not lose

6 games unbeaten now. Some were earned and some were survived, but a habit is forming — and habits are the hardest thing in football to play against.

Squad

Enzo Ribeiro signs on for more

“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Enzo Ribeiro and Cerro agree another 4 years.

Squad

Words at Cerro training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Alejo Macelli is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Market

Iván Valenzuela told to find a new club

“They were honest with me, and I would rather know.” Iván Valenzuela has been informed he is not in the manager's thinking at Cerro.

Squad

No hiding place for Enrique Etcheverry

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Enrique Etcheverry, and the manager let it.

In brief

36 Edition

The Cerro Post

5 Apr 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Pablo Nongoy

Successful dribbles: 25. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

Brahian Alemán in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cerro this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Enrique Etcheverry stays put

“The easiest signature of my career.” Enrique Etcheverry and Cerro agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.

Squad

Alejo Macelli falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

Market

No place for Yonatan Irrazábal in the plan

“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Yonatan Irrazábal has his answer from Cerro; what he does with it is the next window’s story.

Squad

Augusto Cambón named in the team of the month

A month is long enough that nobody gets in by accident. Augusto Cambón is in the division's best eleven for it, which is a quieter compliment than an award and a more reliable one.

In brief

35 Edition

The Cerro Post

29 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Match

Cerro strike at the death to beat Juventud

There were 88 minutes on the clock and Juventud had all but banked the point. Football rarely reads the room, and Cerro did not stop to explain themselves.

Squad

Tempers go at Cerro

Alejo Macelli was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Cristian Barros falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

Match

Cerro find a way past Juventud

Juventud made Cerro work for it, but the scoreboard read 1‑0 at the end and the table does not ask how.

Player ratings

Cristian Barros was on a different afternoon to everybody else

8.21. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Pablo Nongoy

Successful dribbles: 17. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

No hiding place for Juan Cruz Guasone

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Juan Cruz Guasone, and the manager let it.

Squad

Cristian Barros has become a man the manager trusts

Nobody at Cerro will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.

Player ratings

Off the bench and decisive: Pablo da Silveira

The substitution nobody applauded turned out to be the whole story. Cerro were going nowhere until he came on.

In brief

34 Edition

The Cerro Post

22 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Match

Cup progress for Cerro

A 1‑0 win over La Luz, a place in the next round, and the quiet arithmetic every supporter does on the walk home: how many more until a final?

Squad

Damián Suárez: that is not what I was promised

“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Cerro have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Rio Morgan

Successful dribbles: 27. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

Brahian Alemán in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cerro this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Alejo Macelli falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

The terraces

Cerro supporters have found a favourite in Francisco Bregante

There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 22-year-old it feels ownership of. Francisco Bregante has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.

Squad

No hiding place for Facundo Butti

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Facundo Butti, and the manager let it.

Player ratings

The afternoon belonged to Pablo da Silveira

7.98, and no serious argument from anybody who was there. Cerro had eleven men on the pitch and one of them decided how it went.

Match

No goals between Cerro and Racing

Ninety minutes, two goalkeepers with clean gloves, and not one finish worth keeping. Racing will be the happier side with the point.

In brief

33 Edition

The Cerro Post

15 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Player ratings

Cristian Barros runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 35. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Squad

Tempers go at Cerro

Brahian Alemán was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Words at Cerro training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Alejo Macelli is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

The terraces

The crowd has taken to Pablo Nongoy

At 23 he is being sung about by people twice his age, which is an affection a signing has to earn over years and a local kid gets for turning up. It is also the hardest thing in football to live up to.

Match

Cerro get the job done against Miramar Misiones

A 2‑0 win over Miramar Misiones, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.

Player ratings

Pablo Nongoy was on a different afternoon to everybody else

8.33. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.

Squad

No hiding place for Enrique Etcheverry

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Enrique Etcheverry, and the manager let it.

Squad

Cerro pick somebody else ahead of Enrique Etcheverry

There is no complaint available here and everybody involved knows it, which does not make the walk to the bench any shorter. Form is the only currency in football that cannot be borrowed against.

Player ratings

Iván Valenzuela shuts the door

Defensive actions: 10, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.

In brief

32 Edition

The Cerro Post

8 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Match

The wait goes on for Cerro

7 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.

Squad

Brahian Alemán signs on for more

“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Brahian Alemán and Cerro agree another 2 years.

Squad

Alejo Macelli in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cerro this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Cerro training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Cristian Barros is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Player ratings

Pablo Nongoy runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 19. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Match

Cerro come up short against Plaza Colonia

Plaza Colonia left with the points after a 0‑1 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.

In brief

31 Edition

The Cerro Post

1 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Match

6 matches without a win for Cerro

The run now stands at 6, and the questions being asked around Cerro are no longer polite ones.

Squad

Enzo Meirelles: that is not what I was promised

“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Cerro have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.

Player ratings

Pablo Nongoy runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 22. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Squad

Tempers go at Cerro

Brahian Alemán was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Words at Cerro training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Alejo Macelli is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

The terraces

Cerro supporters have found a favourite in Augusto Cambón

There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 22-year-old it feels ownership of. Augusto Cambón has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.

Squad

Damián Suárez gets it from the manager

“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.

Player ratings

The afternoon belonged to Augusto Cambón

7.76, and no serious argument from anybody who was there. Cerro had eleven men on the pitch and one of them decided how it went.

Match

Augusto Cambón rescues a point for Cerro

It needed Augusto Cambón to find the net to bring anything home at all: 1‑1 against Cerro Largo, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.

In brief

30 Edition

The Cerro Post

22 Feb 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Match

No end in sight to Cerro's wait for a win

5 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Cerro has to find a result from somewhere.

Match

Cerro cannot find the net

5 games without scoring. Strikers stop looking up, midfielders take the extra touch, and every shot that clears the bar is followed by a groan that has been building since the last goal.

Squad

Brahian Alemán in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cerro this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Alejo Macelli falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

Match

A bad afternoon for Cerro against Albion

0‑2 to Albion, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.

Player ratings

Cristian Barros runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 17. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

In brief

29 Edition

The Cerro Post

15 Feb 2027
From our football correspondent Crisis

Match

No end in sight to Cerro's wait for a win

4 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Cerro has to find a result from somewhere.

Match

Cerro cannot find the net

4 games without scoring. Strikers stop looking up, midfielders take the extra touch, and every shot that clears the bar is followed by a groan that has been building since the last goal.

Squad

Tempers go at Cerro

Alejo Macelli was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Boardroom

5 academy players handed senior numbers at Cerro

The morning the pathway stops being a brochure and becomes a team sheet. Most of them will not be here in three years; all of them have already done the hard part, which was getting to today.

Squad

Words at Cerro training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Juan Cruz Guasone is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Alejo Macelli

“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.

Market

Joaquin Castro steps up from the Cerro academy

There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Joaquin Castro has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.

Market

Kevin Aguirre steps up from the Cerro academy

There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Kevin Aguirre has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.

Market

Cerro promote Rodrigo Martinez from within

The academy exists for exactly this morning. Rodrigo Martinez has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.

In brief

28 Edition

The Cerro Post

8 Feb 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Alejo Macelli falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

Squad

Enrique Etcheverry in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cerro this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Augusto Cambón gets it from the manager

“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.

In brief

27 Edition

The Cerro Post

1 Feb 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Tempers go at Cerro

Alejo Macelli was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Yonatan Irrazábal gets it from the manager

“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.

Market

No place for Jairo Amaro in the plan

“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Jairo Amaro has his answer from Cerro; what he does with it is the next window’s story.

In brief

26 Edition

The Cerro Post

25 Jan 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Alejo Macelli in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cerro this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Cerro training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Cristian Barros is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Squad

No hiding place for Facundo Butti

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Facundo Butti, and the manager let it.

In brief

25 Edition

The Cerro Post

18 Jan 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Yonatan Irrazábal hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Cerro can pretend not to have heard.

Squad

Cristian Barros in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cerro this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Cerro training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Alejo Macelli is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

In brief

24 Edition

The Cerro Post

11 Jan 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Juan Cruz Guasone in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cerro this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Alejo Macelli falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

Market

Oriental join the queue for Diego Capdevila

Add another name to the list: Oriental have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Diego Capdevila. The answer from Cerro has not changed — yet.

In brief

23 Edition

The Cerro Post

4 Jan 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

A move Diago Fernández would have made for nothing

There is a version of every career where the player ends up somewhere he chose rather than somewhere that chose him. Diago Fernández is living that version at Cerro, and it tends to show in the first month.

Market

Agustín Miranda asks to leave Cerro

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Squad

Tempers go at Cerro

Alejo Macelli was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

The terraces

Cerro spend $520.0K on the signing the town wanted

It is the rarest sequence in football: supporters ask for something, and the club goes and does it. $520.0K for Diago Fernández, and for one week nobody is complaining about anything.

Squad

Cristian Barros falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

Squad

No hiding place for Yonatan Irrazábal

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Yonatan Irrazábal, and the manager let it.

In brief

22 Edition

The Cerro Post

28 Dec 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Gianni Rodríguez puts it in writing

“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Cerro, and it is not being withdrawn.

Squad

Brahian Alemán in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cerro this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Alejo Macelli falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

In brief

21 Edition

The Cerro Post

21 Dec 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Yonatan Irrazábal hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Cerro can pretend not to have heard.

Market

Cerro say no — this time

The offer from Artigas for Diego Capdevila was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.

Squad

Tempers go at Cerro

Alejo Macelli was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Words at Cerro training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Emiliano Sosa is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Squad

Iván Valenzuela gets it from the manager

“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.

Squad

Too much change too quickly at Cerro

8 signings in three months. Every one of them may be an upgrade and the team can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild that never appears in the transfer-window verdicts.

In brief

20 Edition

The Cerro Post

14 Dec 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Nahuel Soria sold, and an era ends

$1.6M from Newell's Old Boys for Nahuel Soria. Money is money, but the dressing room has lost the man it looked to.

The terraces

Supporters turn on the $1.6M sale of Nahuel Soria

He is going to Newell's Old Boys, the club has $1.6M it did not have on Friday, and the phone-ins have already decided how they feel about that. Selling well and selling somebody they loved are not the same skill.

Squad

Alejo Macelli in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cerro this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

A move Rio Morgan would have made for nothing

There is a version of every career where the player ends up somewhere he chose rather than somewhere that chose him. Rio Morgan is living that version at Cerro, and it tends to show in the first month.

Squad

Words at Cerro training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Cristian Barros is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Squad

No hiding place for Juan Cruz Guasone

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Juan Cruz Guasone, and the manager let it.

In brief

19 Edition

The Cerro Post

7 Dec 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Newell's Old Boys watching Nahuel Soria

The interest is real enough to have reached print. Cerro have said nothing, which in a transfer window is its own kind of answer.

Market

Cerro turn down Montevideo City Torque for Fabrizio Correa

The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.

Squad

Tempers go at Cerro

Brahian Alemán was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Market

Agustín Coitto is a Cerro player

The fee is $40.0K, the contract is signed, and the argument about whether he is worth it can begin. Tacuarembo drove a hard bargain; time will say who won it.

Squad

Germán Triunfo stays put

“The easiest signature of my career.” Germán Triunfo and Cerro agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.

Squad

Words at Cerro training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Alejo Macelli is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

In brief

18 Edition

The Cerro Post

30 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Damián Suárez: that is not what I was promised

“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Cerro have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.

Squad

Juan Cruz Guasone in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cerro this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Alejo Macelli falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

In brief

17 Edition

The Cerro Post

23 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Nahuel Soria keeps the receipts

“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Cerro may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.

Market

Yonatan Irrazábal asks to leave Cerro

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Squad

Tempers go at Cerro

Alejo Macelli was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

In brief

  • Squad Words at Cerro training over how hard people work
  • Squad The manager makes an example of Iván Valenzuela
16 Edition

The Cerro Post

16 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Brahian Alemán in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cerro this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Alejo Macelli falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

Squad

No hiding place for Axel Méndez

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Axel Méndez, and the manager let it.

In brief

15 Edition

The Cerro Post

9 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Tempers go at Cerro

Alejo Macelli was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Words at Cerro training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Juan Cruz Guasone is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Pablo Nongoy

“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.

In brief

13 Edition

The Cerro Post

26 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Emiliano Sosa says Cerro went back on their word

“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.

Market

Yonatan Irrazábal hands in a written request

“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Cerro can pretend not to have heard.

Squad

Emiliano Sosa out for 17 days

The medical room confirms 17 days on the sidelines for Emiliano Sosa, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.

In brief

  • Squad Words at Cerro training over how hard people work
  • Squad No hiding place for Facundo Butti
12 Edition

The Cerro Post

19 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Alejo Macelli says Cerro went back on their word

“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.

Squad

Juan Cruz Guasone in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cerro this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Alejo Macelli falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

In brief

11 Edition

The Cerro Post

12 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Alejandro Severo says Cerro went back on their word

“I was told what my role would be, and I signed on that basis. It has not happened.” A grievance with a date attached is the hardest kind to settle.

Squad

Tempers go at Cerro

Alejo Macelli was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Facundo Butti stays put

“The easiest signature of my career.” Facundo Butti and Cerro agree another 4 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.

In brief

10 Edition

The Cerro Post

5 Oct 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Match

The small margins put Cerro out

Out, 0‑1 to Penarol, and the long argument about which of the small moments decided it. The league is all there is now, and everybody knows it.

Squad

Brahian Alemán in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cerro this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Alejo Macelli falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

Match

3 matches without a goal for Cerro

The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 3 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.

Squad

No hiding place for Alejo Macelli

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Alejo Macelli, and the manager let it.

Squad

Damián Suárez dropped after a run of poor form

The one version of being left out a player cannot argue with, and the one he takes worst. Somebody else has been better and the team sheet says so, in public, every week until it changes.

In brief

9 Edition

The Cerro Post

28 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

Yonatan Irrazábal asks to leave Cerro

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Squad

Tempers go at Cerro

Alejo Macelli was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Words at Cerro training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Jairo Amaro is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

In brief

8 Edition

The Cerro Post

21 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Alejo Macelli in a row with a teammate

It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Cerro this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

No hiding place for Juan Cruz Guasone

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Juan Cruz Guasone, and the manager let it.

Squad

Pablo da Silveira has become a man the manager trusts

Nobody at Cerro will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.

In brief

7 Edition

The Cerro Post

14 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Words at Cerro training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Alejo Macelli is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

Squad

Fabrizio Correa gets it from the manager

“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.

Squad

Nahuel Soria knocks on the manager's door

“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Cerro, and both men came out saying it was fine.

In brief

6 Edition

The Cerro Post

7 Sep 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Alejo Macelli falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Iván Valenzuela

“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.

Squad

The armband comes off Fabrizio Correa

Cerro will explain it as a decision about the team, and it may well be one. A dressing room has never once read it that way.

In brief

5 Edition

The Cerro Post

31 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Match

Cristian Barros sends Cerro through

Cup ties wait for somebody to seize them, and Cristian Barros obliged against Nacional. 2‑0 on the night, and the name in the next round’s hat is Cerro.

Player ratings

A brace, and Cristian Barros takes the afternoon — 8.32

There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Cristian Barros provided it, and the 8.32 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.

Player ratings

No sign of nerves from Axel Méndez at 21 — 7.70

The hardest thing about being 21 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Axel Méndez did not need any: 7.70, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.

Market

Yonatan Irrazábal puts it in writing

“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Cerro, and it is not being withdrawn.

Squad

Tempers go at Cerro

Juan Cruz Guasone was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

The terraces

The crowd has taken to Axel Méndez

At 21 he is being sung about by people twice his age, which is an affection a signing has to earn over years and a local kid gets for turning up. It is also the hardest thing in football to live up to.

Match

Cerro come up short against Defensor Sporting

Defensor Sporting left with the points after a 0‑1 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.

Squad

Facundo Butti gets it from the manager

“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.

Squad

Cristian Barros has become a man the manager trusts

Nobody at Cerro will say this on the record and the team sheets have been saying it for weeks. There is a small group in every squad who get picked when the fixture is difficult, and he has joined it.

In brief

4 Edition

The Cerro Post

24 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Match

Cup progress for Cerro

A 1‑0 win over Progreso, a place in the next round, and the quiet arithmetic every supporter does on the walk home: how many more until a final?

Squad

Yonatan Irrazábal keeps Cerro in it on his own

Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 9 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.

Match

Lorenzo Albano wins it after the whistle should have gone

126 minutes played. Lorenzo Albano found the finish in time that only existed because of earlier delays, and Progreso went from a point to nothing inside one movement.

Market

Cerro turn down Huesca for Nahuel Soria

The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.

Player ratings

Pablo Nongoy runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 26. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Squad

Pablo Nongoy pulls a muscle — 14 days out

The injury that keeps coming back, keeps being rushed back from, and quietly costs more careers than the dramatic ones. 14 days is the estimate; the honest figure depends on whether anybody is patient.

Squad

Alejo Macelli falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Juan Cruz Guasone

“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.

Match

Point won or two lost for Cerro?

Ninety minutes, no goals, and the argument started before the car park emptied: a point gained, or two thrown away against Liverpool Montevideo? Both sides of it will still be going on Thursday.

In brief

  • Player ratings Off the bench and decisive: Tiago Rijo
  • Player ratings Ariel Lima spends the afternoon fouling
3 Edition

The Cerro Post

17 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

The unthinkable, invoiced: Santiago Paiva sold

Famalicao arrived with $3.2M and left with the best player in the building. The board will call it business; the queue at the ticket office will use other words.

Match

Cerro through in the cup

A 3‑0 win over Cerrito, and the draw for the next round can be watched with some interest for once.

Player ratings

Rodrigo Mederos runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 33. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Player ratings

No sign of nerves from Tiago Rijo at 21 — 8.03

The hardest thing about being 21 in a senior side is that nobody makes allowances. Tiago Rijo did not need any: 8.03, and he looked the most comfortable man on the pitch.

Squad

Yonatan Irrazábal keeps Cerro in it on his own

Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 6 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.

The terraces

Cerro sell a favourite for $3.2M

The accountants will call it good business and they will be right, which is not the point anybody outside the boardroom is making. Santiago Paiva was one of the reasons people came, and $3.2M does not replace that by itself.

Squad

Tempers go at Cerro

Alejo Macelli was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Market

Cerro sell Bruno Morales for $170.0K

Bruno Morales has left for JS Kabylie in a $170.0K deal. The accountants are pleased; the supporters are less certain.

Squad

Words at Cerro training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Emiliano Sosa is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.

In brief

2 Edition

The Cerro Post

10 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Crisis

Squad

Tempers go at Cerro

Alejo Macelli was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Match

Cerro come up short against Penarol

Penarol left with the points after a 1‑2 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Fabrizio Correa

“If you cannot run for the shirt, somebody else will wear it.” No name was used and none was needed; every player in that room knew who it was for.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Cristian Barros

Successful dribbles: 17. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Market

Nobody at Cerro has picked up the phone to Alejo Macelli

48 months to run and not a word offered. A club that lets the calendar negotiate for it usually ends up losing to the calendar.

Market

JS Kabylie expected to open talks for Bruno Morales

Both sides expect a conversation in the coming days. Cerro will name a price, and everything after that is arithmetic.

In brief

1 Edition

The Cerro Post

3 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Market

Yonatan Irrazábal asks to leave Cerro

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Squad

Fabrizio Correa signs a new deal

“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Fabrizio Correa commits to Cerro for another 4 years.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Alejandro Severo

Successful dribbles: 22. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

Tempers go at Cerro

Santiago Paiva was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.

Squad

Alejo Macelli falls out with a teammate over standards

The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.

Market

JS Kabylie join the queue for Bruno Morales

Add another name to the list: JS Kabylie have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Bruno Morales. The answer from Cerro has not changed — yet.

In brief