The Iquique Gazette
Player ratings14 Feb 2028
Agustín Venezia scores twice — 9.13
Two goals and a mark of 9.13 to go with them. Strikers are judged on afternoons like this one and remembered for far fewer of them than people imagine.
The dugout14 Feb 2028
Agustín Occhiato keeps the receipts
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Iquique may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
Squad14 Feb 2028
Tempers go at Iquique
Agustín Venezia 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 Feb 2028
Simón Contreras runs at them all day
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.
Boardroom14 Feb 2028
5 academy graduates step up at Iquique
Senior shirt numbers handed to boys the coaches have known since they were twelve. Most will not make it and all of them have already done the hard part.
Squad14 Feb 2028
Diego Orellana 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.
Match12 Feb 2028
Iquique get the job done against Union Espanola
A 2‑0 win over Union Espanola, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
Market14 Feb 2028
Guillermo Vargas steps up from the Iquique academy
There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Guillermo Vargas has been at this club since he was a boy and is now, formally, one of the first-team squad — which for a local readership beats any signing of any size.
Market14 Feb 2028
Iquique promote Claudio Sierralta from within
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Claudio Sierralta has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.
In brief
- Market Gonzalo Meneses steps up from the Iquique academy
- Market Gary Pulgar steps up from the Iquique academy
- Boardroom A promise the Iquique board did not keep