Marked for José Ramírez
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match29 May 2027
No end in sight to General Diaz's wait for a win
19 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at General Diaz has to find a result from somewhere.
The terraces31 May 2027
The mood at General Diaz has turned into something else
Supporters who sing when it goes badly are supporters. Supporters who gather afterwards are a problem, and everybody inside the building knows which of the two this now is.
Squad31 May 2027
There were 9 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.
Match29 May 2027
6 matches, two or more conceded in every one of them. Sides that create as much as this can live with it for a while. Nobody lives with it forever.
Squad31 May 2027
Alexandro Giménez and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad31 May 2027
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Adilson Lezcano was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Match29 May 2027
Beaten 1‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Looking ahead31 May 2027
River Plate next, and both sides can do the sum. Win and the table looks different; lose and it looks the way everybody has been fearing.
Player ratings31 May 2027
Mateo Durand did the work nobody counts — 7.04
9 combined actions and 7.04. The job he did is the one that shows up as other people looking good, and the only reliable way to notice it is to watch what happens on the afternoons he is missing.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match22 May 2027
No end in sight to General Diaz's wait for a win
18 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at General Diaz has to find a result from somewhere.
Player ratings24 May 2027
Successful dribbles: 41. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Match22 May 2027
Beaten 0‑4 by Sol de America, and beaten everywhere it matters. The inquest starts on the training pitch on Monday morning.
Market24 May 2027
José Ramírez 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 General Diaz can pretend not to have heard.
Match22 May 2027
6 matches, no goals, and a training ground that has tried everything. It will end — droughts always do — but nobody at General Diaz can tell you which week it ends in.
Match22 May 2027
General Diaz are shipping goals every week
Two or more conceded in each of the last 5 matches. It is not one mistake repeating itself, which would be the easier thing to fix; it is a different one every week.
Squad24 May 2027
Ricardo Cantero and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad24 May 2027
Words at General Diaz training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Adilson Lezcano 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 dugout24 May 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Hugo Flores, and the manager let it.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match15 May 2027
No end in sight to General Diaz's wait for a win
17 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at General Diaz has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad17 May 2027
10 saves, and a scoreline the ten men in front of him had no right to. Goalkeepers only get noticed on the bad days; this was one of the other ones.
Match17 May 2027
1 points, and a fixture list that is running out. The mathematics are not yet cruel, but they are no longer kind.
Match15 May 2027
0‑4 to Libertad, and it was every bit as bad as the number suggests. There are defeats you argue about and defeats you apologise for; this was the second kind.
Match15 May 2027
5 matches without a goal for General Diaz
The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 5 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.
Squad17 May 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at General Diaz this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match15 May 2027
No clean sheets in sight for General Diaz
4 games now with at least two against. The back line has been rearranged, the goalkeeper has been backed publicly, and the goals keep going in anyway.
The dugout17 May 2027
José Ramírez 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.
Boardroom17 May 2027
Nobody left the General Diaz dressing room in a hurry
The door stayed shut a long time after the final whistle. What was said in there is between them; whether it worked is between them and Saturday.
In brief
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The dugout
The manager’s verdict
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Squad
A row about effort at General Diaz
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The dugout
The manager has not finished forgetting Diego Velázquez's mistake
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match1 May 2027
15 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.
The terraces3 May 2027
The mood at General Diaz has turned into something else
Supporters who sing when it goes badly are supporters. Supporters who gather afterwards are a problem, and everybody inside the building knows which of the two this now is.
Match1 May 2027
Chastening afternoon for General Diaz
A 0‑3 beating by Cerro Porteno was the sort of result that empties a stadium long before the final whistle.
Squad3 May 2027
Adilson Lezcano and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Match1 May 2027
3 matches, no goals, and a training ground that has tried everything. It will end — droughts always do — but nobody at General Diaz can tell you which week it ends in.
The dugout3 May 2027
The manager makes an example of Ricardo Cantero
“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.
Looking ahead3 May 2027
Sportivo Trinidense next, and both sides can do the sum. Win and the table looks different; lose and it looks the way everybody has been fearing.
Boardroom3 May 2027
Nobody left the General Diaz dressing room in a hurry
The door stayed shut a long time after the final whistle. What was said in there is between them; whether it worked is between them and Saturday.
Market3 May 2027
“We are a long way apart, and pretending otherwise helps nobody.” Neither side is close, and the calendar is not on the club's side.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match24 Apr 2027
14 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.
Match24 Apr 2027
Beaten 0‑6 by Olimpia, and beaten everywhere it matters. The inquest starts on the training pitch on Monday morning.
Squad26 Apr 2027
17 days out for Sandino Sosa after a fracture
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. General Diaz will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Squad26 Apr 2027
There were 8 saves in it, and at least three that had no business being saves at all. The ten outfield players owe him a drink and they know it.
Squad26 Apr 2027
Adilson Lezcano and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Match24 Apr 2027
Defending was optional and nobody took up the option. 6 goals between General Diaz and Olimpia, and not one of the people who paid to be there will ask for the money back.
Boardroom26 Apr 2027
The numbers do not look good at General Diaz
Wages have outrun income and the accountants have started attending meetings they used to send apologies to. Ambition comes second in a season like this.
Boardroom26 Apr 2027
The music was off and the showers ran late. What was said in that dressing room stays there, but Saturday will publish the minutes.
The dugout26 Apr 2027
“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 0‑6, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match17 Apr 2027
No end in sight to General Diaz's wait for a win
13 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at General Diaz has to find a result from somewhere.
Match19 Apr 2027
1 points, and a fixture list that is running out. The mathematics are not yet cruel, but they are no longer kind.
Squad19 Apr 2027
A fracture rules Sandino Sosa out for 24 days
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason General Diaz will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Squad19 Apr 2027
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 dugout19 Apr 2027
“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.
Squad19 Apr 2027
Alexandro Giménez and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad19 Apr 2027
Words at General Diaz training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Adilson Lezcano 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 dugout19 Apr 2027
The manager makes an example of José Ramírez
“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.
Match17 Apr 2027
Sportivo Luqueno left with the points after a 0‑1 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
In brief
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Match
Halfway: General Diaz sit in position 12
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The dugout
The view from the dugout
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The dugout
A promise honoured for Matías Bogado
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match3 Apr 2027
No end in sight to General Diaz's wait for a win
11 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at General Diaz has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad5 Apr 2027
9 saves, and a scoreline the ten men in front of him had no right to. Goalkeepers only get noticed on the bad days; this was one of the other ones.
Squad5 Apr 2027
A fracture rules Sandino Sosa out for 38 days
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason General Diaz will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Player ratings5 Apr 2027
Age has not caught Jorge Giménez yet — 8.06
At 36 he is supposed to be managing his minutes. Instead he was marked 8.06 and looked, for ninety minutes, exactly like the player everybody remembers.
Squad5 Apr 2027
Ricardo Cantero 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.
Match3 Apr 2027
A 2‑2 draw with General Caballero leaves the dressing room somewhere between relief and regret.
Squad5 Apr 2027
Matías Adamy slips down the pecking order
The demotion a club never announces and a dressing room always notices. Matías Adamy is further from the side than he was, and the reason will not be given until he asks.
The dugout5 Apr 2027
The form table has caught Hugo Flores
Somebody else has been better, the manager has said so with a team sheet, and there is no argument to be had. He will get the shirt back the only way it can be got back.
The dugout5 Apr 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Mateo Durand, and the manager let it.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad8 Mar 2027
A fracture rules Sandino Sosa out for 70 days
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason General Diaz will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
Match3 Mar 2027
Guarani ended it 1‑2. The season narrows to the league now, and everyone in the ground knew it before the final whistle.
Match6 Mar 2027
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.
Squad8 Mar 2027
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 7 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Player ratings8 Mar 2027
Mateo Durand beats them one at a time
Successful dribbles: 27. There was always a defender in front of him and there was never a defender in front of him for long.
Match6 Mar 2027
7 matches, two or more conceded in every one of them. Sides that create as much as this can live with it for a while. Nobody lives with it forever.
Squad8 Mar 2027
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Adilson Lezcano and General Diaz agree another 2 years.
Squad8 Mar 2027
Ricardo Cantero 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.
Match6 Mar 2027
Beaten 0‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad1 Mar 2027
13 saves, and a scoreline the ten men in front of him had no right to. Goalkeepers only get noticed on the bad days; this was one of the other ones.
Squad1 Mar 2027
Sandino Sosa breaks a bone — 77 days out
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 77 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
The dugout1 Mar 2027
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” General Diaz have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Match27 Feb 2027
5 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.
Match27 Feb 2027
5 matches, two or more conceded in every one of them. Sides that create as much as this can live with it for a while. Nobody lives with it forever.
Squad1 Mar 2027
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at General Diaz this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Boardroom1 Mar 2027
The numbers do not look good at General Diaz
Wages have outrun income and the accountants have started attending meetings they used to send apologies to. Ambition comes second in a season like this.
The dugout1 Mar 2027
The manager makes an example of José Ramírez
“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.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad3 Aug 2026
Ricardo Cantero and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad3 Aug 2026
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Mateo Durand commits to General Diaz for another 5 years.
Squad3 Aug 2026
The system has changed and his position has not. A footballer can improve his form; he cannot improve the manager’s formation, and that is the whole of the problem.
Squad3 Aug 2026
8 new faces, and General Diaz are still learning each other
A squad rebuilt inside one window pays for it in a currency nobody budgets for. The football is not worse than the sum of the players; it is worse than the sum of the players who have played together before.
Market3 Aug 2026
“There is a gap, and pretending there is not helps nobody.” Neither side has moved, and the calendar is working for exactly one of them.
Market3 Aug 2026
“They were honest with me, and I would rather know.” David Valenzuela has been informed he is not in the manager's thinking at General Diaz.