Rarely has this fixture seen a display like it: 3‑0 against Deportivo Maldonado, and it could have been more.
Player ratings5 May 2031
A brace, and Yamil García takes the afternoon — 9.50
There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Yamil García provided it, and the 9.50 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Rampla Juniors they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Sebastián Cal and Rampla Juniors agree another 2 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Enrique Almeida provided it, and the 9.20 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.
Successful dribbles: 31. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Ignacio Ferrer will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Rampla Juniors the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Oriental made Rampla Juniors work for it, but the scoreboard read 3‑2 at the end and the table does not ask how.
Squad7 Apr 2031
Words at Rampla Juniors training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Daniel Martínez 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.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Ignacio Ferrer will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Rampla Juniors the goodbyes have quietly begun.
6 goals. Both benches spent the second half looking at each other rather than at the pitch. Purists will complain about Rampla Juniors and Miramar Misiones in equal measure; everybody else had a wonderful time.
Player ratings10 Mar 2031
Enrique Almeida was on a different afternoon to everybody else
9.83. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.
The 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.
Player ratings10 Mar 2031
Yamil García was on a different afternoon to everybody else
8.94. There are performances a supporter describes to somebody who was not there and cannot quite convey; this was one, and the number does not help either.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Rampla Juniors they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
“There is a gap, and pretending there is not helps nobody.” Neither side has moved, and the calendar is working for exactly one of them.
Squad10 Feb 2031
Words at Rampla Juniors training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Vicente Solís 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 one of these fixtures for somebody every season. This one is Sebastián Cal’s: the club that knew him first, the supporters who will decide in the first minute whether to applaud, and Rampla Juniors needing him to play as if none of it matters.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Enrique Almeida signs something — a contract at Rampla Juniors or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Rampla Juniors, and both men came out saying it was fine.
49 graduates, from a department now rated 7 out of 20. Nothing about the academy appears in a result, and nothing about the club’s future exists without it.
Daniel Martínez and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Rampla Juniors asked and Penarol said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Diego García was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Rampla Juniors know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Position 4 on 46 points, and the places that carry a European ticket are close enough to count. Seasons like this are decided by two results in April, and the club knows which two.
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 Ignacio Ferrer is on it.
A year in and the language has not come, the city has not opened up, and he eats alone more often than anybody at Rampla Juniors would like to admit. It is showing on Saturdays.
Nothing in writing and nothing in public: a word about playing time, given face to face at Rampla Juniors. The team sheets over the next month will show whether it was worth having.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Rampla Juniors they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Some transfers need a press campaign. This one needed a shirt with the old number on it. Genaro Rossi is a Rampla Juniors player again, and the town has its story of the summer.
Rampla Juniors asked and Penarol said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
Squad13 Jan 2031
Words at Rampla Juniors training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Daniel Martínez 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.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Miguel Barrios and Rampla Juniors agree another 3 years.
The system has changed and his position has not. A footballer can improve his form; he cannot improve the manager’s formation, and that is the whole of the problem.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Enrique Almeida signs something — a contract at Rampla Juniors or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Yamil García and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Some transfers need a press campaign. This one needed a shirt with the old number on it. Alberto Eiraldi is a Rampla Juniors player again, and the town has its story of the summer.
The offer went to Montevideo City Torque this week and it is theirs to answer. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loud the door closes.
Rampla Juniors offered $61.0K; Cerro said it was not close. The manager will be told the money is still there for the right player, which is what managers are told.
Rampla Juniors asked and Millonarios said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.
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.
Add another name to the list: Uruguay Montevideo have asked the question everybody in the game has been asking about Leandro Azurez. The answer from Rampla Juniors has not changed — yet.
In brief
The dugoutDiego García knocks on the manager’s door
The words a physio says slowly. 16 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.
Transfer targets9 Dec 2030
$16.0K settles it between the clubs for Hugo Silveira
Montevideo City Torque have accepted the money. What Rampla Juniors do not yet have is the man, and between here and the photograph is a conversation about wages that both sides are dreading.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Rampla Juniors they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
The deal with Vélez is done in every sense but the one that puts him on the pitch. Nothing goes wrong at this stage, except on the occasions when it does.
He will play here until the summer and then walk out of the door for free, having already signed elsewhere. Supporters will manage the first part of that sentence; it is the second they will struggle with.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Rampla Juniors this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
“I was told straight, and I would rather have it straight.” The manager at Rampla Juniors has been clear about where Daniel Martínez stands, which is more than many ever get.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Diego García was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The words a physio says slowly. 23 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.
“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 Rampla Juniors, and it is not being withdrawn.
Enrique Almeida 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.
Words at Rampla Juniors training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Daniel Martínez 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.
Rampla Juniors have made the call to Colo-Colo. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
Rampla Juniors have made the call to Vélez. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Brandon Farías has his answer from Rampla Juniors; what he does with it is the next window’s story.
The words a physio says slowly. 44 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.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Rampla Juniors this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Daniel Martínez was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Diego García trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Renzo Pereira and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad28 Oct 2030
Words at Rampla Juniors training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Diego García 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.
Enrique Almeida 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.
Renzo Pereira 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.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Rampla Juniors know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Position 4 on 46 points, and the places that carry a European ticket are close enough to count. Seasons like this are decided by two results in April, and the club knows which two.
Yamil García 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 Sep 2030
Words at Rampla Juniors training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Renzo Pereira 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. Rampla Juniors know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Nicolás Ruotola was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
At 18 he has spent a month being better than everybody his age in the league, which is a different and harder thing than one good afternoon. Rampla Juniors will try very hard not to make too much of it.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Nicolás Ruotola and Rampla Juniors agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Yamil García 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.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Nicolás Ruotola was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
5 signings in three months. Every one of them may be an upgrade and the team can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild that never appears in the transfer-window verdicts.
“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Benjamín Córdova has his answer from Rampla Juniors; what he does with it is the next window’s story.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Rampla Juniors know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Position 4 on 46 points, and the places that carry a European ticket are close enough to count. Seasons like this are decided by two results in April, and the club knows which two.
Position 3, 19 points, and the result everyone checks first is now theirs. The word is still not being said around the ground, which is how you know everyone is thinking it.
Successful dribbles: 27. He went past people as if he had been told there was a prize for it, and by the end the full-back had stopped pretending to try.
Squad15 Apr 2030
Ángel Llanes 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.
Plaza Colonia next, and the two sides the division is watching meet each other. Whoever wins will be told nothing is decided in the same breath as being congratulated.
Ignacio Ferrer 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.
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.
6 goals. Both benches spent the second half looking at each other rather than at the pitch. Purists will complain about Rampla Juniors and Uruguay Montevideo in equal measure; everybody else had a wonderful time.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Yamil García. 4‑2 against Uruguay Montevideo, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Successful dribbles: 20. There was always a defender in front of him and there was never a defender in front of him for long.
Squad25 Feb 2030
Ángel Llanes 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 a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 23-year-old it feels ownership of. Juan Rodríguez 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.
In brief
Player ratingsNinety minutes of Enrique Almeida at his very best
16 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Rampla Juniors 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 Rampla Juniors, and it is not being withdrawn.
Bruno Veglio and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
There is a version of every career where the player ends up somewhere he chose rather than somewhere that chose him. Nana Baba is living that version at Rampla Juniors, and it tends to show in the first month.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Ángel Llanes was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Leandro Azurez and Rampla Juniors agree another 4 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
He is 18, and nobody at Rampla Juniors signed him for this season. Deals like this are judged in four years, by people who may not still be in the building.
“The manager did not use many words, and he did not need to.” Agustín Buffa has his answer from Rampla Juniors; what he does with it is the next window’s story.
41 days on the estimate, and a long, private, unglamorous year of a rehabilitation nobody watches. Rampla Juniors lose a footballer; he loses considerably more than a season.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Joaquín Varela will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Rampla Juniors 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 Rampla Juniors, and it is not being withdrawn.
Yamil García and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad3 Dec 2029
Ángel Llanes 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.
Rampla Juniors have made the call to Nacional. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.
San Martín SJ 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.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Enrique Almeida signs something — a contract at Rampla Juniors or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at Rampla Juniors, another week without a signature from Lorenzo San Emeterio.
69 days on the announcement, and a year of quiet, unwatched rehabilitation behind it. Rampla Juniors lose a player for a season; he loses something harder to name.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Rampla Juniors is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Bruno Veglio and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
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.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Enrique Almeida signs something — a contract at Rampla Juniors or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
Nobody at Rampla Juniors 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 words a physio says slowly. 97 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.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Rampla Juniors they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Bruno Veglio and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad8 Oct 2029
Ángel Llanes 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.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Enrique Almeida signs something — a contract at Rampla Juniors or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
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.
Position 5, 43 points, and a run-in that decides whether next season has Thursday nights in it. Nobody is calling it a race yet, which is what people say during one.
He trains hard, says the right things and goes home to an empty flat. Nobody at Rampla Juniors has done anything wrong, which is exactly what makes it so difficult to fix.
In brief
The dugoutGenaro Rossi knocks on the manager's door