Marked for José Sequera
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad15 May 2028
Luis Casimiro Peña damages knee ligaments — 40 days out
The words a physio says slowly. 40 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.
Squad15 May 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.
Market15 May 2028
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Zamora is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Squad15 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 Zamora this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match13 May 2028
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Edinson Largacha. 3‑2 against Anzoátegui, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Squad15 May 2028
Words at Zamora training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Cristian Díaz 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 terraces15 May 2028
He is 23 and the ground already sings his name, which is a thing that happens to local boys and almost never to signings. Everything from here is measured against an affection he did nothing to earn except be from here.
The dugout15 May 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.
Player ratings15 May 2028
Marked 8.37 — the sort of number a correspondent writes down twice to be sure. Everything he tried came off, and what he did not try was not worth trying.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad6 Mar 2028
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 8 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Squad6 Mar 2028
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Erickson Gallardo and Zamora agree another 3 years.
Squad6 Mar 2028
Cristian Díaz 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 Mar 2028
“I did not go to Atlético El Vigía to sit and watch. I want to come back to Zamora and fight for my place.” 0 appearances in 9 matches say the rest.
Player ratings6 Mar 2028
Successful dribbles: 19. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad6 Mar 2028
200 games in this shirt, through managers and relegations and everything else. Service like it is disappearing from the game and the crowd knows what it is watching.
The dugout6 Mar 2028
It is not much of a headline and it is the reason players believe the next promise. Zamora told Edinson Largacha something would happen and then it happened, which in this industry passes for remarkable.
The dugout6 Mar 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to José Sequera, and the manager let it.
The dugout6 Mar 2028
It is never announced and it is entirely visible: the biggest afternoons of the season keep containing him. A press box works this out long before anybody at the club confirms a word of it.
From our football correspondent
Triumph
Match23 Feb 2028
Cup progress for Zamora
A 3‑1 win over Real Frontera, a place in the next round, and the quiet arithmetic every supporter does on the walk home: how many more until a final?
Player ratings28 Feb 2028
2 goals, and the second was the one that settled it. Marked 8.79, and he could have had a third with better luck at the near post.
Player ratings28 Feb 2028
Two goals and a mark of 8.60 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.
Player ratings28 Feb 2028
Up for the corner, and Gabriel Benítez delivers — 7.75
Centre-halves are allowed forward twice a season and are judged on what they do when they get there. Gabriel Benítez scored, was marked 7.75, and got back before anybody noticed he had gone.
Match26 Feb 2028
Zamora cannot stop winning
3 wins on the spin now, and the question has changed from whether the run ends to who ends it. Confidence like this cannot be bought; it has to be earned exactly this way.
Match26 Feb 2028
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: José Sequera. 3‑2 against Trujillanos, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
The terraces28 Feb 2028
Zamora supporters have found a favourite in José Sequera
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 23-year-old it feels ownership of. José Sequera 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.
Squad28 Feb 2028
A row about effort at Zamora
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Stiven Valencia was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout28 Feb 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Stiven Valencia, and the manager let it.
In brief
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The terraces
A long trip to Trujillanos worth making
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Squad
Words exchanged at Zamora
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The dugout
The manager’s verdict
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Match19 Feb 2028
Ninety minutes of very little, and then everything at once. The winner arrived in the 87th, and Caracas spent what remained of the match appealing to the referee rather than chasing the ball.
Squad21 Feb 2028
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.
Market21 Feb 2028
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Zamora they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
The dugout21 Feb 2028
César Urpín: 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.” Zamora have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad21 Feb 2028
Words at Zamora training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Cristian Díaz 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.
Squad21 Feb 2028
A falling-out at Zamora
Antony Trujillo and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
The dugout21 Feb 2028
The manager makes an example of Isaí Valladares
“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.
Match19 Feb 2028
Caracas made Zamora work for it, but the scoreboard read 1‑0 at the end and the table does not ask how.
Player ratings21 Feb 2028
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.03, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market18 Oct 2027
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Stiven Valencia will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Zamora the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Squad18 Oct 2027
A falling-out at Zamora
Edwuin Pernía and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad18 Oct 2027
“The easiest signature of my career.” Néstor Jiménez and Zamora agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Squad18 Oct 2027
Words at Zamora training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Anthonys Matos 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 dugout18 Oct 2027
The manager makes an example of José Sequera
“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.
The dugout18 Oct 2027
Cristian Díaz gets picked when it counts
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Cristian Díaz is on it.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market30 Aug 2027
“I listened, I thought about it, and I am staying. That is the whole story.” The clubs had agreed a fee. Edwuin Pernía had not agreed to go, which turned out to be the part that mattered.
Market30 Aug 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 Zamora, and it is not being withdrawn.
Market30 Aug 2027
Only the photograph left for Cristian Díaz
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Cristian Díaz will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Zamora the goodbyes have quietly begun.
The dugout30 Aug 2027
José Sequera: 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.” Zamora have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad30 Aug 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 Zamora this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad30 Aug 2027
A row about effort at Zamora
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Anthonys Matos was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Loan watch30 Aug 2027
“I did not go to Deportivo La Guaira to sit and watch. I want to come back to Zamora and fight for my place.” 0 appearances in 10 matches say the rest.
The dugout30 Aug 2027
The manager makes an example of Kevin Díaz
“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.
The dugout30 Aug 2027
Richard Celis gets picked when it counts
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say Richard Celis is on it.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Match10 Apr 2027
4‑1, and the margin flattered nobody — it could have carried another goal or two without complaint. Afternoons like this are why people keep coming.
Player ratings12 Apr 2027
2 goals, and the second was the one that settled it. Marked 8.13, and he could have had a third with better luck at the near post.
Market12 Apr 2027
Isaac Ramírez has one foot out of the door
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Zamora they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Squad12 Apr 2027
A falling-out at Zamora
Edwuin Pernía and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad12 Apr 2027
Words at Zamora training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Anthonys Matos 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 dugout12 Apr 2027
“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.
Squad12 Apr 2027
200 games in this shirt, through managers and relegations and everything else. Service like it is disappearing from the game and the crowd knows what it is watching.
Player ratings12 Apr 2027
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.18, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
The dugout12 Apr 2027
The view from the dugout
“We controlled it. There were spells I did not like and we will look at them, but the group showed me something.” Oscar Moreno, on a 4‑1 win that he was already picking apart on the walk to the press room.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Market18 Jan 2027
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Zamora is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Squad18 Jan 2027
A falling-out at Zamora
Edwuin Pernía and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Market18 Jan 2027
As if he never left: César Urpín returns
Some transfers need a press campaign. This one needed a shirt with the old number on it. César Urpín is a Zamora player again, and the town has its story of the summer.
Transfer targets18 Jan 2027
Zamora asked and Atletico Nacional said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Squad18 Jan 2027
A row about effort at Zamora
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Anthonys Matos was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout18 Jan 2027
“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.
The dugout18 Jan 2027
José Sequera has become a man the manager trusts
Nobody at Zamora 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.
The dugout18 Jan 2027
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Zamora, and both men came out saying it was fine.
The dugout18 Jan 2027
The manager makes Anthony Uribe a promise
Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at Zamora. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Market21 Dec 2026
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Atlético El Vigía waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Zamora is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
Market21 Dec 2026
Zamora say no — this time
The offer from Atlético El Vigía for Jean Paúl Madera 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.
Market21 Dec 2026
Isaac Ramírez has one foot out of the door
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Zamora they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Squad21 Dec 2026
A falling-out at Zamora
Edwuin Pernía and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Market21 Dec 2026
The interest is real enough to have reached print. Zamora have said nothing, which in a transfer window is its own kind of answer.
Squad21 Dec 2026
Words at Zamora training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Sergio Sulbarán 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 dugout21 Dec 2026
The manager makes an example of Raudy Guerrero
“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.
Transfer targets21 Dec 2026
Bragantino have been asked whether they would lend him. Loans are agreed quickly or not at all, and this one will be one or the other by the weekend.
Transfer targets21 Dec 2026
A loan move for Valente Pierani is in the works
Zamora have made the call to Estudiantes. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Market12 Oct 2026
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Zamora they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Boardroom12 Oct 2026
The rules permit it and it stings anyway. Antony Trujillo has agreed terms with Deportivo Tachira for the summer, and until then he pulls on this shirt as a player who has already chosen his next one.
Squad12 Oct 2026
Isaí Valladares is a better footballer than he was
Not a run of form — an actual step up, held for months. At 21 he is doing things at this level he could not do at the start of the season, and the coaching staff will tell you exactly which of them.
Squad12 Oct 2026
Tempers go at Zamora
Edwuin Pernía 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.
Squad12 Oct 2026
Edgar Benítez gets the move he always wanted
Footballers are asked about their boyhood club so often that nobody listens to the answer. Edgar Benítez has just signed for Zamora, and for once the answer mattered.
Squad12 Oct 2026
A row about effort at Zamora
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Anthonys Matos was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout12 Oct 2026
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Sergio Sulbarán, and the manager let it.
The dugout12 Oct 2026
Arlés Flores knocks on the manager’s door
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Arlés Flores trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
The dugout12 Oct 2026
José Sequera gets picked when it counts
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say José Sequera is on it.
From our football correspondent
Upbeat
Squad7 Sep 2026
A falling-out at Zamora
Gabriel Benítez and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
The dugout7 Sep 2026
The manager makes an example of Richard Celis
“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.
Squad7 Sep 2026
Stiven Valencia 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 Sep 2026
Carlos Lujano slips down the pecking order
The demotion a club never announces and a dressing room always notices. Carlos Lujano is further from the side than he was, and the reason will not be given until he asks.
Squad7 Sep 2026
César Urpín moves up the pecking order
Nothing is announced when this happens and everybody knows. He is a bigger part of the plan at Zamora than he was a month ago, and the training ground worked that out before the team sheet said so.
The dugout7 Sep 2026
José Sequera gets picked when it counts
Every manager keeps a short list in his head of the men he wants on the pitch when the stakes rise, and it is never published. The team sheets for the big afternoons say José Sequera is on it.