Marked for Facundo Balatti
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad14 Jan 2030
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.
Market14 Jan 2030
Málaga get their man
The chase for Facundo Balatti ended with $3.5M changing hands and Penarol out of reasons to say no. The supporters will judge the fee the only way that matters: on Saturdays.
Squad14 Jan 2030
Tempers go at Málaga
Xaver Schlager 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 Jan 2030
The manager makes an example of Gerard Moreno
“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 ratings14 Jan 2030
Marked 8.43 — 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.
Player ratings14 Jan 2030
Shots: 8, not one of them in. A centre forward is paid for one thing, and on this evidence he has forgotten which thing it is.
Squad14 Jan 2030
A season average of 7.24 with 9 goals behind it. Opponents have started planning around him, which is the sincerest compliment football pays.
Match12 Jan 2030
It finished 1‑1, and it somehow always looked like it would. One of those afternoons where the table moves less than the tempers.
Market14 Jan 2030
“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Roggerio Nyakossi has his answer from Málaga; what he does with it is the next window’s story.
Back issues
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market14 Jan 2030
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Penarol can pretend not to have heard.
Squad14 Jan 2030
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Penarol may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Market14 Jan 2030
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Market14 Jan 2030
Facundo Balatti has left for Málaga in a $3.5M deal. The accountants are pleased; the supporters are less certain.
Market14 Jan 2030
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Penarol is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Squad14 Jan 2030
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Penarol this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market24 Dec 2029
Eric Remedi 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 Penarol can pretend not to have heard.
Squad24 Dec 2029
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Penarol may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Market24 Dec 2029
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Market24 Dec 2029
The name of Facundo Balatti has come up in conversations Penarol were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
Squad24 Dec 2029
Eduardo Darias 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.
Market24 Dec 2029
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Penarol is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad17 Dec 2029
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Penarol may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Market17 Dec 2029
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Squad17 Dec 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Penarol this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad17 Dec 2029
An individual honour is a strange thing in a team game, and the best of them are never argued with. He has had the sort of year that ends with his name being read out, and Penarol have had the benefit of it.
Market17 Dec 2029
The name of Matías González has come up in conversations Penarol were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
Squad17 Dec 2029
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Gonzalo Mottes commits to Penarol for another 3 years.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market10 Dec 2029
Penarol say no — this time
The offer from Rampla Juniors for Facundo Balatti 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.
Market10 Dec 2029
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Penarol they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Market10 Dec 2029
The deal that would have taken Jonathan Cañete to Artigas has collapsed at the last stage, and he reports back to Penarol with a summer to forget and a season still to play. Nobody is saying which side walked away.
Market10 Dec 2029
The fee is $1.1M, the contract is signed, and the argument about whether he is worth it can begin. Gimnasia y Esgrima drove a hard bargain; time will say who won it.
Squad10 Dec 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Penarol this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad10 Dec 2029
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Ricardo Rosales commits to Penarol for another 3 years.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market3 Dec 2029
Albion come back empty-handed
The bid was some way short and Penarol did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.
Market3 Dec 2029
“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.
Market3 Dec 2029
“I have ambitions, and I would like the club to share them.” Nobody has asked to leave and nobody has been shown the door — but a player chooses that sentence carefully, and a boardroom hears it exactly as it was meant.
Market3 Dec 2029
The phone has started ringing about Facundo Balatti again, and this time the name on the line is Rampla Juniors. Penarol are listening politely and promising nothing.
Squad3 Dec 2029
The medical room confirms 153 days on the sidelines for Jonathan Cañete, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
Squad3 Dec 2029
“The easiest signature of my career.” Nicolás Sosa and Penarol agree another 2 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad26 Nov 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Penarol this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad26 Nov 2029
The manager makes an example of Bruno Simone
“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.
Squad26 Nov 2029
Eric Remedi 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 Eric Remedi trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market19 Nov 2029
“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.
Squad19 Nov 2029
“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.
Market19 Nov 2029
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Stiven Muhlethaler will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Penarol the goodbyes have quietly begun.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Market29 Oct 2029
Lucas Carrizo 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 Penarol can pretend not to have heard.
Squad29 Oct 2029
Lucas Carrizo: 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.” Penarol have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad29 Oct 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Penarol this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad1 Oct 2029
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Penarol may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad1 Oct 2029
Leonardo Fernández 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.
Squad1 Oct 2029
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Rodrigo Dudok, and the manager let it.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Squad3 Sep 2029
“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.
Market3 Sep 2029
Only the photograph left for Renzo Cupla
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Renzo Cupla will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Penarol the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Market3 Sep 2029
Eduardo Darias wants to know where this is going
“I want to win things, and I would like to do it here.” Nothing has been demanded and nothing has been threatened — but a boardroom at Penarol hears a sentence like that exactly as it was built.
Squad3 Sep 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Penarol this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings3 Sep 2029
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.
Match1 Sep 2029
Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.
Squad3 Sep 2029
“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.
Boardroom3 Sep 2029
The manager kept them in and said what needed saying. A response is expected on Saturday, and if it does not come the questions move upstairs.
Squad3 Sep 2029
An error at the back is a moment; an error in goal is a goal. Washington Aguerre knows it, the crowd knew it instantly, and there was nobody behind him to make it anything else.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Match25 Jul 2029
Penarol bow out of the cup
Racing go through and Penarol go home, 0‑1 the scoreline that did it. The dressing room will call the league the priority now, because that is what dressing rooms say.
Squad30 Jul 2029
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.
Market30 Jul 2029
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Market30 Jul 2029
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Penarol is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Player ratings30 Jul 2029
Successful dribbles: 23. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad30 Jul 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Penarol this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Market30 Jul 2029
Both sides expect a conversation in the coming days. Penarol will name a price, and everything after that is arithmetic.
Market30 Jul 2029
The interest is real enough to have reached print. Penarol have said nothing, which in a transfer window is its own kind of answer.
Player ratings30 Jul 2029
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.06, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market23 Jul 2029
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Market23 Jul 2029
“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 Penarol, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad23 Jul 2029
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.
Market23 Jul 2029
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Penarol they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Market23 Jul 2029
The interest is real enough to have reached print. Penarol have said nothing, which in a transfer window is its own kind of answer.
Squad23 Jul 2029
The medical room confirms 62 days on the sidelines for Jonathan Cañete, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
Squad23 Jul 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Penarol this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings23 Jul 2029
Successful dribbles: 20. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Player ratings23 Jul 2029
A performance of 9.04 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Match7 Jul 2029
No end in sight to Penarol's wait for a win
7 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Penarol has to find a result from somewhere.
Market9 Jul 2029
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Market9 Jul 2029
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Penarol can pretend not to have heard.
Squad9 Jul 2029
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Penarol may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Market9 Jul 2029
Renzo Cupla has one foot out of the door
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Penarol they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Player ratings9 Jul 2029
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.
Market9 Jul 2029
The fee is $690.0K, the contract is signed, and the argument about whether he is worth it can begin. Nacional drove a hard bargain; time will say who won it.
Squad9 Jul 2029
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Washington Aguerre commits to Penarol for another 2 years.
Squad9 Jul 2029
Leonardo Fernández 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
Player ratings2 Jul 2029
Defensive actions: 30, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Market2 Jul 2029
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Market2 Jul 2029
“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 Penarol, and it is not being withdrawn.
Match30 Jun 2029
6 matches without a win for Penarol
The run now stands at 6, and the questions being asked around Penarol are no longer polite ones.
Market2 Jul 2029
The shirt still fits. Franco González is back at Penarol, and half the ground remembers him in these colours already. Some signings need selling to the town; this one sold itself.
Squad2 Jul 2029
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Washington Aguerre and Penarol agree another 2 years.
Squad2 Jul 2029
Franco González 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.
Player ratings2 Jul 2029
Successful dribbles: 22. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Market2 Jul 2029
Both sides expect a conversation in the coming days. Penarol will name a price, and everything after that is arithmetic.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Market25 Jun 2029
“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.
Player ratings25 Jun 2029
Successful dribbles: 30. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Market25 Jun 2029
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Penarol is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Match23 Jun 2029
5 matches without a win for Penarol
The run now stands at 5, and the questions being asked around Penarol are no longer polite ones.
Market25 Jun 2029
The phone has started ringing about Facundo Balatti again, and this time the name on the line is Atenas. Penarol are listening politely and promising nothing.
Market25 Jun 2029
The chase for Tomás López ended with $250.0K changing hands and River Plate out of reasons to say no. The supporters will judge the fee the only way that matters: on Saturdays.
Squad25 Jun 2029
Leonardo Fernández 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.
Squad25 Jun 2029
14 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
Match23 Jun 2029
0‑1 to Progreso, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
From our football correspondent
Crisis
Match9 Jun 2029
Beaten 0‑3 by Racing, and beaten everywhere it matters. The inquest starts on the training pitch on Monday morning.
Market11 Jun 2029
Penarol say no — this time
The offer from Defensor Sporting for Alexander Machado 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.
Squad11 Jun 2029
Paulo da Costa: 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.” Penarol have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Market11 Jun 2029
The name of Leandro Umpiérrez has come up in conversations Penarol were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
Squad11 Jun 2029
“The easiest signature of my career.” Facundo Balatti and Penarol agree another 5 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Squad11 Jun 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Penarol this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad11 Jun 2029
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Diego Laxalt, and the manager let it.
Boardroom11 Jun 2029
Doors closed at Penarol
The music was off and the showers ran late. What was said in that dressing room stays there, but Saturday will publish the minutes.
Player ratings11 Jun 2029
Successful dribbles: 16. 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
Steady
Market4 Jun 2029
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Market4 Jun 2029
“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.
Squad4 Jun 2029
“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.
Market4 Jun 2029
“I have ambitions, and I would like the club to share them.” Nobody has asked to leave and nobody has been shown the door — but a player chooses that sentence carefully, and a boardroom hears it exactly as it was meant.
Match2 Jun 2029
7 unbeaten for Penarol
Hard to beat is not the same as winning, but 7 matches without defeat is a foundation Penarol did not have in the autumn.
Squad4 Jun 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Penarol this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad4 Jun 2029
“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 ratings4 Jun 2029
Successful dribbles: 17. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Player ratings21 May 2029
Successful dribbles: 21. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Player ratings21 May 2029
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 9.12, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Squad21 May 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Penarol this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad21 May 2029
“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 ratings21 May 2029
Marked 8.12 — 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.
Squad21 May 2029
An error at the back is a moment; an error in goal is a goal. Washington Aguerre knows it, the crowd knew it instantly, and there was nobody behind him to make it anything else.
Match19 May 2029
It needed Eduardo Darias to find the net to bring anything home at all: 1‑1 against Albion, and half the dressing room will call it a point won.
The terraces21 May 2029
Every touch is being weighed now, in print and everywhere else. Some players grow into that and some are quietly ruined by it, and nobody knows which in advance.
Squad21 May 2029
He wheeled away like a man who had been carrying it for months, because he had. Penarol have their signing off the mark and one press-conference question retired.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad14 May 2029
Franco Escobar 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.
Player ratings14 May 2029
Marked 8.61 — 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.
Match12 May 2029
It finished 1‑0, and it was Leandro Umpiérrez’s afternoon: on the scoresheet when it mattered, and the reason the points belong to Penarol.
Player ratings14 May 2029
A performance of 8.04 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.
Player ratings14 May 2029
Defensive actions: 18, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Player ratings14 May 2029
Successful dribbles: 16. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Squad14 May 2029
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Matías González, and the manager let it.
Squad14 May 2029
A booking nobody needed, on a night the game was already won. Penarol lose a player for the most avoidable reason there is.
Squad14 May 2029
Facundo Balatti asks for a word with the manager
“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Player ratings7 May 2029
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.
Squad7 May 2029
“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Franco Escobar commits to Penarol for another 2 years.
Squad7 May 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Penarol this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match5 May 2029
Penarol get the job done against Cerro
A 1‑0 win over Cerro, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
Player ratings7 May 2029
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.21, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Player ratings7 May 2029
Marked 8.02 — 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.
Squad7 May 2029
“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 ratings7 May 2029
Defensive actions: 15, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Squad7 May 2029
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Facundo Batista trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Player ratings9 Apr 2029
Defensive actions: 32, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Squad9 Apr 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Penarol this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Player ratings9 Apr 2029
Successful dribbles: 22. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Player ratings9 Apr 2029
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.
Squad9 Apr 2029
The manager makes an example of Gonzalo Mottes
“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 ratings9 Apr 2029
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 15 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
Squad9 Apr 2029
Eric Remedi 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 Penarol, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Match7 Apr 2029
Ninety minutes, two goalkeepers with clean gloves, and not one finish worth keeping. Plaza Colonia will be the happier side with the point.
Squad9 Apr 2029
“I did not come here to warm up in front of people.” He is out of contract eventually, he is old enough to count the weeks, and Penarol will have to give him a reason to stay or an exit.
From our football correspondent
Uneasy
Squad12 Mar 2029
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.
Squad12 Mar 2029
Facundo Batista: 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.” Penarol have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Match10 Mar 2029
No end in sight to Penarol's wait for a win
5 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Penarol has to find a result from somewhere.
Player ratings12 Mar 2029
Successful dribbles: 20. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Player ratings12 Mar 2029
Marked 8.98 — 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.
Squad12 Mar 2029
Renzo Cupla 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 Penarol this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad12 Mar 2029
15 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
Match10 Mar 2029
A 1‑1 draw with Progreso leaves the dressing room somewhere between relief and regret.
Player ratings12 Mar 2029
The one thing Nicolás Sosa could not do
Shots: 8, enough of them from close enough that a striker in form scores two. He is not a striker in form.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market5 Feb 2029
“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.
Market5 Feb 2029
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Matías González will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Penarol the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Squad5 Feb 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Penarol this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad5 Feb 2029
The manager makes an example of Darlvin Yeboah
“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.
Squad5 Feb 2029
“I respect the manager and I am not going to sit here and pretend I am happy.” It is the most common sentence in football and it has never once been the end of a story.
Market5 Feb 2029
1 months remain and no agreement is close. Every week without a signature costs Penarol money.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market15 Jan 2029
Both sides expect a conversation in the coming days. Penarol will name a price, and everything after that is arithmetic.
Squad15 Jan 2029
82 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.
Market15 Jan 2029
Add another name to the list: Basel have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Daniel Aguirre. The answer from Penarol has not changed — yet.
Squad15 Jan 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Penarol this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad15 Jan 2029
Facundo Balatti has seen what the next man earns
Numbers do not stay secret in a dressing room and never have. He is not asking for more than he is worth; he is asking why somebody beside him is worth more, and at Penarol that is a harder question to answer.
Market15 Jan 2029
Penarol spent the window trying to move Javier Cabrera on and nobody came. He trains with a squad that has already told him he is not part of it, and both sides now wait for the next one.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market8 Jan 2029
Artigas come back empty-handed
The bid was some way short and Penarol did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.
Market8 Jan 2029
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Penarol they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Squad8 Jan 2029
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Jonathan Cañete and Penarol agree another 2 years.
Squad8 Jan 2029
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Penarol this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad8 Jan 2029
Paolo Calione 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 Penarol, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Squad8 Jan 2029
A new face in his position, and Nicolás Retamar suddenly has to win back what he thought he owned. Penarol have promised nothing — clubs rarely do at this stage.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Market4 Dec 2028
The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.
Squad4 Dec 2028
He is 19, he is averaging 6.68, and older professionals have started passing to him in the difficult minutes. That last part is the real scouting report.
Market4 Dec 2028
Eduardo Darias wants to know where this is going
“I want to win things, and I would like to do it here.” Nothing has been demanded and nothing has been threatened — but a boardroom at Penarol hears a sentence like that exactly as it was built.
Squad4 Dec 2028
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Nahuel Herrera and Penarol agree another 5 years.
Squad4 Dec 2028
Nahuel Herrera 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.
Loan watch4 Dec 2028
“I watch every Penarol game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Emirates Club runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Loan watch6 Nov 2028
“I did not go to Emirates Club to sit and watch. I want to come back to Penarol and fight for my place.” 2 appearances in 17 matches say the rest.
Squad6 Nov 2028
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Andrés Madruga, and the manager let it.
Loan watch6 Nov 2028
The goals keep arriving from Stiven Muhlethaler’s exile
3 goals in 28 games at Montevideo City Torque — numbers that travel home faster than he does. Somebody at Penarol updates a spreadsheet every Monday, and it makes better reading each week.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad23 Oct 2028
Franco Escobar: 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.” Penarol have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad23 Oct 2028
25 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.
Squad23 Oct 2028
The medical room confirms 25 days on the sidelines for Facundo Balatti, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad9 Oct 2028
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Franco Escobar and Penarol agree another 2 years.
Squad9 Oct 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 Penarol this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Loan watch9 Oct 2028
“I watch every Penarol game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Emirates Club runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad25 Sep 2028
Nahuel Herrera 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.
Squad25 Sep 2028
The medical room confirms 59 days on the sidelines for Javier Cabrera, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
Squad25 Sep 2028
57 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad11 Sep 2028
45 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.
Squad11 Sep 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 Penarol this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Loan watch11 Sep 2028
“I did not go to Emirates Club to sit and watch. I want to come back to Penarol and fight for my place.” 0 appearances in 9 matches say the rest.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Player ratings14 Aug 2028
Defensive actions: 38, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Squad14 Aug 2028
There were 10 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.
Squad14 Aug 2028
79 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.
Player ratings14 Aug 2028
Defensive actions: 24, and a clean sheet at the end of it. A centre-half's best afternoons look like nothing happening, which is precisely the point.
Squad14 Aug 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 Penarol this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad14 Aug 2028
“The easiest signature of my career.” Leandro Umpiérrez and Penarol agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Player ratings14 Aug 2028
Headers, blocks, tackles, interceptions — 18 of them, and not one goal behind him. The sort of performance that never makes a highlight reel and wins football matches.
Player ratings14 Aug 2028
Successful dribbles: 16. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Loan watch14 Aug 2028
“I did not go to Emirates Club to sit and watch. I want to come back to Penarol and fight for my place.” 0 appearances in 5 matches say the rest.
From our football correspondent
Steady
Squad17 Jul 2028
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.
Squad17 Jul 2028
113 days, the medical staff say, and medical staff are optimists by profession. The team sheet will look wrong without him.
Squad17 Jul 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 Penarol this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Match15 Jul 2028
A 2‑1 win over Boston River, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
Player ratings17 Jul 2028
Marked 8.98 — 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.
Player ratings17 Jul 2028
Successful dribbles: 17. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Market17 Jul 2028
Both sides expect a conversation in the coming days. Penarol will name a price, and everything after that is arithmetic.
Squad17 Jul 2028
4 goals and a season average of 7.29. Form like that gets noticed well beyond this town.
Market17 Jul 2028
The list is a quiet document with a loud meaning. Alejo Macelli may talk to anybody who asks, and everybody at the club understands what that means.