The Zulia Chronicle
Player ratings23 Apr 2029
Nobody could get near Oscar Herrera
Successful dribbles: 50. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.
Player ratings23 Apr 2029
Age has not caught Darwin Ferraresi yet — 7.89
At 34 he is supposed to be managing his minutes. Instead he was marked 7.89 and looked, for ninety minutes, exactly like the player everybody remembers.
Market23 Apr 2029
Rafael Rondon is on his way
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Zulia is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Squad23 Apr 2029
Roberto Otero 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 Zulia this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad23 Apr 2029
Jean Frank Gutiérrez 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 terraces23 Apr 2029
Zulia supporters have found a favourite in Oscar Osorio
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 23-year-old it feels ownership of. Oscar Osorio 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.
Match21 Apr 2029
Zulia see off Trujillanos
Three points for Zulia, 1‑0 the final word against Trujillanos in a contest settled by the finer margins.
Squad23 Apr 2029
Salomon Ramirez out for 47 days
The medical room confirms 47 days on the sidelines for Salomon Ramirez, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.
Squad23 Apr 2029
Jean Issa gets it from the manager
“Nobody here is above being told.” It was not said with a name attached, but the dressing room can count, and so can everybody who was listening.
In brief
- Player ratings Roberto Otero ran the game
- Player ratings Jean Frank Gutiérrez spends the afternoon fouling