The mood at Central Norte 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.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Máximo Suazo will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Central Norte the goodbyes have quietly begun.
“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 The request is on a desk at Central Norte, and it is not being withdrawn.
Squad29 Sep 2031
Words at Central Norte training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Jonás Zerda 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 silence upstairs is getting loud at Central Norte
Nobody on the board has said anything against the manager, which is the point — they have stopped saying anything for him either.
Player ratings22 Sep 2031
A brace, and Ossy Martins takes the afternoon — 7.86
There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Ossy Martins provided it, and the 7.86 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Juan Manuel Escobar will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Central Norte the goodbyes have quietly begun.
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.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Central Norte this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Máximo Suazo trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
“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 The request is on a desk at Central Norte, and it is not being withdrawn.
Ossy Martins 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 Sep 2031
Words at Central Norte training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Jonás Zerda 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.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Central Norte know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
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.
The mood at Central Norte 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.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Central Norte is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
4 games without scoring. Strikers stop looking up, midfielders take the extra touch, and every shot that clears the bar is followed by a groan that has been building since the last goal.
18 defensive actions and a clean sheet at the end of them. A defender's afternoon can only be told by what did not happen, which is why nobody makes a highlights package out of one and every manager in the division would take it.
Squad1 Sep 2031
Words at Central Norte training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ossy Martins 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.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Central Norte this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
A change in the dugout is not one story, it is twenty-five of them. This is Franco Vedoya's: he was somebody's player, and now he has to be somebody else's, starting from nothing.
4 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at Central Norte has to find a result from somewhere.
Squad18 Aug 2031
Words at Central Norte training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Jonás Zerda 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.
There is no complaint available here and everybody involved knows it, which does not make the walk to the bench any shorter. Form is the only currency in football that cannot be borrowed against.
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.
The mood at Central Norte 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.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 16 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Máximo Suazo will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Central Norte the goodbyes have quietly begun.
1 for Bautista Agostinelli, marked 7.65, and a centre-half's name in the part of the report he normally only reaches by mistake. He will not be allowed to forget it in the dressing room for a month.
Ossy Martins 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.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 23 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
“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 Central Norte, and it is not being withdrawn.
The phone has started ringing about Máximo Suazo again, and this time the name on the line is Mitre. Central Norte are listening politely and promising nothing.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Juan Manuel Escobar will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Central Norte the goodbyes have quietly begun.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Central Norte this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
6 goals. Both benches spent the second half looking at each other rather than at the pitch. Purists will complain about Central Norte and Almirante Brown in equal measure; everybody else had a wonderful time.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 37 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Ramiro Enríquez will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Central Norte the goodbyes have quietly begun.
0‑1 to San Martín SJ, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.
Squad14 Jul 2031
Ossy Martins 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.
Carlos Alberto Morales 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.
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Central Norte will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
“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 Central Norte, and it is not being withdrawn.
27 defensive actions and a clean sheet at the end of them. A defender's afternoon can only be told by what did not happen, which is why nobody makes a highlights package out of one and every manager in the division would take it.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Central Norte this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Successful dribbles: 16. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad7 Jul 2031
Jonás Zerda 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.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Central Norte will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Central Norte can pretend not to have heard.
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.
Boardroom30 Jun 2031
The silence upstairs is getting loud at Central Norte
Nobody on the board has said anything against the manager, which is the point — they have stopped saying anything for him either.
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 21-year-old it feels ownership of. Facundo Ferreyra 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.
Squad30 Jun 2031
Words at Central Norte training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ossy Martins 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.
19 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.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Central Norte will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
“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 Central Norte, and it is not being withdrawn.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Central Norte is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Ossy Martins 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.
Squad16 Jun 2031
Words at Central Norte training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Jonás Zerda 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.
18 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.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Central Norte will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Central Norte can pretend not to have heard.
The offer from Gimnasia y Esgrima for Máximo Suazo 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.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Central Norte this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“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.
Squad9 Jun 2031
Ossy Martins 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.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Central Norte will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
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.
Boardroom2 Jun 2031
The silence upstairs is getting loud at Central Norte
Nobody on the board has said anything against the manager, which is the point — they have stopped saying anything for him either.
The phone has started ringing about Máximo Suazo again, and this time the name on the line is Gimnasia y Esgrima. Central Norte are listening politely and promising nothing.
Player ratings2 Jun 2031
A first appearance Pedro Paz will want to forget — 5.58
Everybody's debut is one of two stories and this was the other one. 5.58, and the only consolation available is that nobody's career has ever been decided by ninety minutes in a shirt he had just been given.
Tigre go through and Central Norte go home, 1‑2 the scoreline that did it. The dressing room will call the league the priority now, because that is what dressing rooms say.
There were 6 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.
Player ratings28 Apr 2031
A first appearance Pato will want to forget — 5.22
Everybody's debut is one of two stories and this was the other one. 5.22, and the only consolation available is that nobody's career has ever been decided by ninety minutes in a shirt he had just been given.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Central Norte this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad28 Apr 2031
Words at Central Norte training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Hugo López 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 clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Central Norte is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 4 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.
Agustín Bustinduy 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.
“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.
Squad21 Apr 2031
Words at Central Norte training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ossy Martins 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 one version of being left out a player cannot argue with, and the one he takes worst. Somebody else has been better and the team sheet says so, in public, every week until it changes.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Central Norte this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
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.
Squad31 Mar 2031
Ossy Martins 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.
There is no complaint available here and everybody involved knows it, which does not make the walk to the bench any shorter. Form is the only currency in football that cannot be borrowed against.
Marked 5.31. Nothing he attempted worked and by the hour mark he had stopped attempting much, which is the part a manager notices rather than the mistakes.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Máximo Suazo signs something — a contract at Central Norte or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Central Norte this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
A month is long enough that nobody gets in by accident. Juan Manuel Escobar is in the division's best eleven for it, which is a quieter compliment than an award and a more reliable one.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Máximo Suazo signs something — a contract at Central Norte or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Central Norte they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 36 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Central Norte can pretend not to have heard.
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.
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Central Norte can pretend not to have heard.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 43 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
Nobody upstairs has said anything, which is the loudest thing they could do. Results buy silence in this game; the account at Central Norte is running low.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Central Norte this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
The words a physio says slowly. 14 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.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Central Norte can pretend not to have heard.
Nobody upstairs has said anything, which is the loudest thing they could do. Results buy silence in this game; the account at Central Norte is running low.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Central Norte this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
A conversation is coming this week. Central Norte will put a number on him, and from there it stops being football and becomes arithmetic.
Squad23 Dec 2030
Ossy Martins 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.
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.
The words a physio says slowly. 35 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.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Central Norte can pretend not to have heard.
The name of Máximo Suazo has come up in conversations Central Norte were not part of. Nothing formal, nothing signed — but nothing about it accidental either.
Boardroom2 Dec 2030
An order from above at Central Norte: somebody has to go
Balance sheets do not care about form or about who the manager was planning to build around. The board have decided a sale is required, and the only question left is which name ends up carrying it.
Squad2 Dec 2030
Words at Central Norte training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ossy Martins 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.
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
The words a physio says slowly. 42 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.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Central Norte can pretend not to have heard.
Boardroom25 Nov 2030
The silence upstairs is getting loud at Central Norte
Nobody on the board has said anything against the manager, which is the point — they have stopped saying anything for him either.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Central Norte this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad25 Nov 2030
Ossy Martins falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The words a physio says slowly. 63 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.
Agustín Bustinduy 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.
It has stopped being a mood in the stands and started being something organised. Boards can ignore a bad atmosphere for a long time; they cannot ignore this stage of it for very long at all.
The words a physio says slowly. 70 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.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Central Norte can pretend not to have heard.
The directors have stopped offering the manager public warmth. In football that is usually the stage before the short statement.
Squad28 Oct 2030
Words at Central Norte training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Hugo López 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.
84 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Central Norte lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
“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 Central Norte, and it is not being withdrawn.
“Things were said to me before I signed. I am not going to repeat them, but I remember all of them.” Central Norte have not answered, which is an answer of sorts.
Squad14 Oct 2030
Words at Central Norte training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ossy Martins 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.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Central Norte, and both men came out saying it was fine.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Franco Vedoya signs something — a contract at Central Norte or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
In brief
MarketThe clock does Paolo Dorini’s negotiating for him
91 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Central Norte lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
“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 Central Norte, and it is not being withdrawn.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Central Norte this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
In brief
SquadWords at Central Norte training over how hard people work
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Central Norte can pretend not to have heard.
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 23-year-old it feels ownership of. Paolo Dorini 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.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Central Norte this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad26 Aug 2030
Words at Central Norte training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Hugo López 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.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Máximo Suazo trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Central Norte can pretend not to have heard.
Agustín Bustinduy 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.
Successful dribbles: 17. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Squad19 Aug 2030
Words at Central Norte training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ossy Martins 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.
Ninety minutes, no goals, and the argument started before the car park emptied: a point gained, or two thrown away against Tristán Suárez? Both sides of it will still be going on Thursday.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Ramiro Enríquez signs something — a contract at Central Norte or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
The mood at Central Norte 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.
There is no crueller way to lose a football match. Central Norte scored in the 95th minute, the restart barely happened, and the away end was still standing when the whistle went.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Paolo Dorini. 3‑2 against Defensores Unidos, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
The young player of the month award goes to a 21-year-old at Central Norte who has looked like the finished article for four weekends running. The next four are the ones that decide whether he is.
Squad8 Jul 2030
Words at Central Norte training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ossy Martins 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 offer from Mitre for Máximo Suazo 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.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Central Norte can pretend not to have heard.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Central Norte this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.46, and no argument anywhere in the ground.
Squad1 Jul 2030
Ossy Martins 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.
“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 Central Norte, and it is not being withdrawn.
The instruction has come from upstairs rather than from the dugout, which is the version of this conversation no manager enjoys. Somebody in that squad is now available whether the man who picks the team thinks so or not.
“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.
Squad3 Jun 2030
Words at Central Norte training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Hugo López 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.
Four or five weekends of consistency, judged against everybody in the division doing his job. Santiago Cuellar has come out of that comparison in the side, and Central Norte have had the benefit of every one of those afternoons.
The mood at Central Norte 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.
Agustín Bustinduy 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.
A 2‑1 win over Chaco For Ever, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 23-year-old it feels ownership of. Máximo Suazo 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.
Squad13 May 2030
Hugo López 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.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Central Norte can pretend not to have heard.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Central Norte this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Successful dribbles: 17. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Squad22 Apr 2030
Words at Central Norte training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Hugo López 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 mood at Central Norte 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.
Successful dribbles: 32. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.
Player ratings15 Apr 2030
A brace, and Sergio Cohen takes the afternoon — 8.12
There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Sergio Cohen provided it, and the 8.12 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.
“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 Central Norte, and it is not being withdrawn.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Sergio Cohen. 4‑3 against Mitre, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Defending was optional and nobody took up the option. 7 goals between Central Norte and Mitre, and not one of the people who paid to be there will ask for the money back.
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 23-year-old it feels ownership of. Máximo Suazo 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.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Central Norte will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
“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 Central Norte, and it is not being withdrawn.
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.
“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.
Squad11 Mar 2030
Ossy Martins 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.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Central Norte can pretend not to have heard.
There is an age at which every good afternoon gets described as a throwback, which is unfair and also accurate. 8.60 at 35, and nobody on the pitch was better.
At 23 he is being sung about by people twice his age, which is an affection a signing has to earn over years and a local kid gets for turning up. It is also the hardest thing in football to live up to.
Squad25 Feb 2030
Ossy Martins 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.
There is no complaint available here and everybody involved knows it, which does not make the walk to the bench any shorter. Form is the only currency in football that cannot be borrowed against.
“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 Central Norte, and it is not being withdrawn.
A conversation is coming this week. Central Norte will put a number on him, and from there it stops being football and becomes arithmetic.
Squad10 Dec 2029
Ossy Martins 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.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Ramiro Enríquez trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
What was said behind closed doors has now been said in front of a microphone. Everybody at Central Norte can do the arithmetic, including the man it is aimed at.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Central Norte can pretend not to have heard.
The phone has started ringing about Máximo Suazo again, and this time the name on the line is Maipú. Central Norte are listening politely and promising nothing.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Central Norte this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Franco Cavalieri and Central Norte agree another 1 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Squad3 Dec 2029
Words at Central Norte training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ossy Martins 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.
Every squad has men who were signed by a particular manager and men who were merely inherited. Mauricio Rosales is in the first group, and the man who wanted him here is no longer in the building.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Central Norte know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
The list is a quiet document with a loud meaning. Agustín Bustinduy may talk to anybody who asks, and everybody at the club understands what that means.
In brief
The terracesThe stands have heard the Mateo Fofre talk too
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Central Norte can pretend not to have heard.
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.
Mateo Fofre 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.
Squad19 Nov 2029
Words at Central Norte training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Ossy Martins 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.
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.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Mateo Fofre trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.