Marked for Octavio Martínez
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad12 Jun 2028
Esteban Rolón 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.
Squad12 Jun 2028
Joaquín Escobar damages knee ligaments — 15 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 15 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.
Match7 Jun 2028
Aldosivi march on in the cup
Atlético Tucumán are out and Aldosivi go through, 2‑1 the final word. The bracket opens up a little, and everyone allows themselves a look at it.
Market12 Jun 2028
“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 The request is on a desk at Aldosivi, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad12 Jun 2028
“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.
Squad12 Jun 2028
16 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.
Boardroom12 Jun 2028
San Martín will keep picking him until June and will get nothing for him after it. Mauro García has pre-agreed a move to Aldosivi, and the only people who lose in that arrangement are the ones who let the contract run down.
The terraces12 Jun 2028
At 22 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.
Player ratings12 Jun 2028
Maximiliano Elsener was on a different afternoon to everybody else
8.30. 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.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Steady
The terraces8 May 2028
The boos come down from three sides
“We pay for this every fortnight. The least we want is somebody who looks like he cares.” 8 of the 38 senior players walked off into it; the rest were not playing.
Squad8 May 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Aldosivi this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad8 May 2028
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Lucas Rodríguez and Aldosivi agree another 2 years.
Squad8 May 2028
Words at Aldosivi training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Rodrigo González 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.
Squad8 May 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Guillermo Enrique, and the manager let it.
Match6 May 2028
Atlético Tucumán left with the points after a 0‑2 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
Market8 May 2028
The name of Nicolás Cordero keeps appearing in other people's back pages. Aldosivi say nothing, which says plenty.
Player ratings8 May 2028
A mark of 5.41 tells the story without any need for embellishment. He will want the tape of this one quietly lost.
Player ratings8 May 2028
Successful dribbles: 11. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Match19 Apr 2028
Aldosivi through in the cup
A 5‑4 win over San Miguel, and the draw for the next round can be watched with some interest for once.
Match19 Apr 2028
The 2-goal deficit was real and so was the recovery. Alexis Devesa was at the centre of it, San Miguel were at the end of it, and everybody who left early will hear about this one for years.
Squad24 Apr 2028
A one-man rearguard from Axel Werner
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.
Squad24 Apr 2028
3 goals in one game. The first was taken well, the second was taken greedily, and by the third the crowd were simply waiting for him to get the ball.
Market24 Apr 2028
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Emanuel Iñíguez will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Aldosivi the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Squad24 Apr 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Aldosivi this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings24 Apr 2028
Octavio Martínez was on a different afternoon to everybody else
8.94. 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.
The terraces24 Apr 2028
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.
Squad24 Apr 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Nicolás Cordero, and the manager let it.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad21 Feb 2028
A knee injury of the worst kind for Octavio Martínez
22 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Aldosivi lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Squad21 Feb 2028
A one-man rearguard from Axel Werner
There were 7 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.
Market21 Feb 2028
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Aldosivi can pretend not to have heard.
Market21 Feb 2028
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Aldosivi is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Squad21 Feb 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Aldosivi this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
The terraces21 Feb 2028
At 22 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.
Match19 Feb 2028
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Martín García. 1‑0 against Banfield, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Player ratings21 Feb 2028
Ninety minutes of Rodrigo González at his very best
Marked 8.41. Players have careers without a single afternoon like this in them, and he has just had one in front of everybody at Aldosivi.
Squad21 Feb 2028
Lucas Rodríguez 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.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad14 Feb 2028
Octavio Martínez damages knee ligaments — 30 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 30 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.
Market14 Feb 2028
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Aldosivi can pretend not to have heard.
Match12 Feb 2028
The wait goes on for Aldosivi
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.
Squad14 Feb 2028
22 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
Squad14 Feb 2028
Guillermo Enrique 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.
Squad14 Feb 2028
Words at Aldosivi training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Rodrigo González 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 ratings14 Feb 2028
Successful dribbles: 20. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Player ratings14 Feb 2028
4.44 on the card. Some afternoons a footballer looks like a man who has only just been introduced to the game, and this was one of them.
Match12 Feb 2028
Ninety minutes, two goalkeepers with clean gloves, and not one finish worth keeping. Ferro Carril Oeste will be the happier side with the point.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad7 Feb 2028
A knee injury of the worst kind for Octavio Martínez
38 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Aldosivi lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Market7 Feb 2028
“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 Aldosivi, and it is not being withdrawn.
Player ratings7 Feb 2028
Successful dribbles: 25. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Match5 Feb 2028
No end in sight to Aldosivi's wait for a win
4 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Aldosivi has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad7 Feb 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Aldosivi this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Boardroom7 Feb 2028
Graduation day at Aldosivi
5 boys move up, and somewhere in the building the people who coached them at twelve are quietly having the best morning of their working year. Nothing about this shows up in a result and it is why the academy exists.
Squad7 Feb 2028
Rodrigo González 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.
Squad7 Feb 2028
“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.
Market7 Feb 2028
One of our own: Tomás Rey joins the Aldosivi first team
Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Tomás Rey is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad31 Jan 2028
Octavio Martínez damages knee ligaments — 46 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 46 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.
Market31 Jan 2028
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Aldosivi can pretend not to have heard.
Boardroom31 Jan 2028
The scrutiny sharpens at Aldosivi
Nobody upstairs has said anything, which is the loudest thing they could do. Results buy silence in this game; the account at Aldosivi is running low.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad24 Jan 2028
Octavio Martínez damages knee ligaments — 53 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 53 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.
Market24 Jan 2028
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Aldosivi is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Squad24 Jan 2028
Esteban Rolón 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.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad17 Jan 2028
Octavio Martínez damages knee ligaments — 60 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 60 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.
Market17 Jan 2028
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Squad17 Jan 2028
The medical room confirms 52 days on the sidelines for Esteban Rolón, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad10 Jan 2028
Octavio Martínez damages knee ligaments — 69 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 69 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.
Market10 Jan 2028
“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.
Market10 Jan 2028
The name of Nicolás Cordero has come up in conversations Aldosivi were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
Squad10 Jan 2028
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Aldosivi this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad10 Jan 2028
Lucas Rodríguez 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.
Squad10 Jan 2028
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Facundo De La Vega and Aldosivi agree another 3 years.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad3 Jan 2028
A knee injury of the worst kind for Octavio Martínez
76 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Aldosivi lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Market3 Jan 2028
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Aldosivi can pretend not to have heard.
Boardroom3 Jan 2028
The scrutiny sharpens at Aldosivi
Nobody upstairs has said anything, which is the loudest thing they could do. Results buy silence in this game; the account at Aldosivi is running low.
Squad3 Jan 2028
Esteban Rolón 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.
Squad3 Jan 2028
Rodrigo González 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.
Squad3 Jan 2028
59 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad27 Dec 2027
A knee injury of the worst kind for Octavio Martínez
85 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Aldosivi lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Market27 Dec 2027
“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 Aldosivi, and it is not being withdrawn.
Market27 Dec 2027
Only the photograph left for Junior Arias
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Junior Arias will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Aldosivi the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Squad27 Dec 2027
Federico Gino: 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.” Aldosivi have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad27 Dec 2027
30 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
Squad27 Dec 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 Aldosivi this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad20 Dec 2027
Octavio Martínez damages knee ligaments — 93 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 93 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.
Market20 Dec 2027
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Aldosivi can pretend not to have heard.
Squad20 Dec 2027
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Aldosivi may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad20 Dec 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 Aldosivi this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad20 Dec 2027
Lucas Rodríguez 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.
Market20 Dec 2027
Aldosivi have made Lautaro Chávez available for transfer. A career at this club is over in all but paperwork.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad13 Dec 2027
A knee injury of the worst kind for Octavio Martínez
101 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Aldosivi lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Market13 Dec 2027
“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.
Squad13 Dec 2027
Guillermo Enrique 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.
Squad13 Dec 2027
Words at Aldosivi training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Rodrigo González 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.
Squad13 Dec 2027
15 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad6 Dec 2027
A knee injury of the worst kind for Octavio Martínez
108 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Aldosivi lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Market6 Dec 2027
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Aldosivi can pretend not to have heard.
Squad6 Dec 2027
Matías Morello: 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.” Aldosivi have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad6 Dec 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 Aldosivi this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad6 Dec 2027
Rodrigo González 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.
Loan watch6 Dec 2027
“I watch every Aldosivi game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at AEL runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad29 Nov 2027
A knee injury of the worst kind for Octavio Martínez
115 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Aldosivi lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Squad29 Nov 2027
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Aldosivi have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad29 Nov 2027
Guillermo Enrique 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.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad22 Nov 2027
A knee injury of the worst kind for Octavio Martínez
122 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Aldosivi lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Market22 Nov 2027
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Aldosivi can pretend not to have heard.
Squad22 Nov 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 Aldosivi this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad22 Nov 2027
Rodrigo González 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.
Squad22 Nov 2027
Nobody will confirm this and nothing else explains the last month of selections. A costly error buys a player a period of being second choice that is always longer than the error was.
Market22 Nov 2027
The list is a quiet document with a loud meaning. Federico Laurelli may talk to anybody who asks, and everybody at the club understands what that means.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad15 Nov 2027
A knee injury of the worst kind for Octavio Martínez
129 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Aldosivi lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Market15 Nov 2027
“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.
Market15 Nov 2027
Only the photograph left for Lucas Meza
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Lucas Meza will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Aldosivi the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Squad15 Nov 2027
Guillermo Enrique 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.
Squad15 Nov 2027
Words at Aldosivi training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Rodrigo González 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.
Squad15 Nov 2027
Clubs make promises constantly and the page usually only hears about them when they are broken. This one was honoured, and the dressing room noticed that faster than any supporter did.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad8 Nov 2027
Octavio Martínez damages knee ligaments — 137 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 137 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.
Market8 Nov 2027
“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.
Squad8 Nov 2027
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Aldosivi may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad14 Jun 2027
Tomás Fernández damages knee ligaments — 104 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 104 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.
Squad14 Jun 2027
A shoot-out is remembered by its ending, and this one ends with Ignacio Chicco: 2 kept out, and a set of supporters who will describe every one of them for the next twenty years.
Match9 Jun 2027
Aldosivi bow out of the cup
Instituto go through and Aldosivi go home, 0‑0 the scoreline that did it. The dressing room will call the league the priority now, because that is what dressing rooms say.
Market14 Jun 2027
Aldosivi say no — this time
The offer from Junior for Nicolás Cordero 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.
Player ratings14 Jun 2027
Defensive actions: 27, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Market14 Jun 2027
“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.
Squad14 Jun 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 Aldosivi this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad14 Jun 2027
Words at Aldosivi training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Guillermo Enrique 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 ratings14 Jun 2027
19 times he got in the way of something. Centre-halves get written about when they make mistakes and ignored when they do not, so an afternoon like this needs saying out loud: he is the reason the scoreline reads as it does.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad3 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 Aldosivi this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad3 May 2027
Words at Aldosivi training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Guillermo Enrique 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.
Squad3 May 2027
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Guillermo Enrique, and the manager let it.
Player ratings3 May 2027
Successful dribbles: 15. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad3 May 2027
A place in the month's best eleven for Nicolás Zalazar
Four or five weekends of consistency, judged against everybody in the division doing his job. Nicolás Zalazar has come out of that comparison in the side, and Aldosivi have had the benefit of every one of those afternoons.
Match1 May 2027
It needed Agustín Palavecino to find the net to bring anything home at all: 1‑1 against Estudiantes, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.