Gianluca Lapadula

Striker - Universitario
21 Nov 2027
Sunday
Process

Marked for Gianluca Lapadula

55 Edition

The Universitario Gazette

16 Aug 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Market

César Inga wants European nights

The general version of this complaint is that a player wants more. The specific version names the thing: he wants to walk out under floodlights against clubs from other countries, and he has stopped pretending otherwise.

Squad

Alex Valera 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 Universitario this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Universitario training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Aldo Corzo 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.

Squad

When it matters, Hugo Ancajima plays

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.

Squad

No hiding place for Williams Riveros

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Williams Riveros, and the manager let it.

Market

The Gianluca Lapadula question follows Universitario around

Every press conference now starts and ends the same way: with Gianluca Lapadula’s future. The manager has run out of new ways to say nothing.

In brief

Back issues
53 Edition

The Universitario Gazette

2 Aug 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

A fracture rules Williams Riveros out for 14 days

Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Universitario will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.

Squad

Hugo Ancajima says Universitario went back on their word

“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.

Market

The Sporting Cristal deal is off

Everything was agreed until it was not, and Gianluca Lapadula reports back to Universitario with a summer to forget. Neither club is saying who walked away from the table.

Squad

9 seasons of Aldo Corzo

485 appearances across 9 seasons in these colours. Careers like that are not built any more, and Universitario know what they have.

Market

Luis Cabrera is on his way

The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Universitario is pretending he will be back in the shirt.

Squad

Alex Valera 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 Universitario this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

In brief

52 Edition

The Universitario Gazette

26 Jul 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

A fracture rules Williams Riveros out for 23 days

Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Universitario will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.

Squad

Tempers go at Universitario

Alex Valera 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.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Lisandro Alzugaray

“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.

In brief

50 Edition

The Universitario Gazette

12 Jul 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Match

Universitario refuse to drop out of the race

Position 2, 46 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.

Squad

A fracture rules Williams Riveros out for 39 days

Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Universitario will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.

Market

Universitario say no — this time

The offer from Sporting Cristal for Gianluca Lapadula 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.

Market

Universitario sign Yimy Gamero for $1.5M

The paperwork is done: Yimy Gamero joins from Melgar in a deal worth $1.5M. Now comes the harder part.

Squad

Tempers go at Universitario

Alex Valera 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.

Squad

Lisandro Alzugaray 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.

In brief

49 Edition

The Universitario Gazette

5 Jul 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Player ratings

Jairo Concha runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 37. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Squad

A fracture rules Williams Riveros out for 46 days

Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Universitario will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.

Market

Aldo Corzo 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 Universitario can pretend not to have heard.

Squad

Alex Valera 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 Universitario this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Market

Eyes on Gianluca Lapadula again

The phone has started ringing about Gianluca Lapadula again, and this time the name on the line is Sporting Cristal. Universitario are listening politely and promising nothing.

Loan watch

Sékou Gassama wants to come home

“I did not go to Libertad to sit and watch. I want to come back to Universitario and fight for my place.” 4 appearances in 25 matches say the rest.

Boardroom

Universitario release $4.3M for the manager

The board have put money on the table rather than an encouraging word. What happens to it now is somebody else's problem, and somebody else's job.

Squad

Matías Di Benedetto left out for the big one

A player who expected to start watched it instead. The manager will call it a decision for the team; Matías Di Benedetto will call it something else in private.

Player ratings

José Carabalí takes the honours

Marked 7.41 on an afternoon he ran from the first whistle to the last. Whatever else went wrong, Universitario had the best player on the pitch.

In brief

48 Edition

The Universitario Gazette

28 Jun 2027
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Héctor Fertoli

Successful dribbles: 51. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

A fracture rules Williams Riveros out for 53 days

Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Universitario will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.

Match

Bryan Reyna settles it late for Universitario

The 86th minute, half the ground already edging towards the exits, and Bryan Reyna decided nobody was going anywhere. Deportivo Municipal had no time left to answer.

Market

Gianluca Lapadula puts it in writing

“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 Universitario, and it is not being withdrawn.

Market

Universitario turn down UTC for Jems Tenorio

The offer was not close and it was refused without much discussion. Whether the second one is refused as quickly is another matter.

Squad

Tempers go at Universitario

Alex Valera 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.

Squad

Lisandro Alzugaray 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.

Squad

No hiding place for Lisandro Alzugaray

“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Lisandro Alzugaray, and the manager let it.

Match

Bryan Reyna the difference as Universitario beat Deportivo Municipal

Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Bryan Reyna. 1‑0 against Deportivo Municipal, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.

In brief

47 Edition

The Universitario Gazette

21 Jun 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Jairo Concha

Successful dribbles: 42. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Squad

A fracture rules Williams Riveros out for 60 days

Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Universitario will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.

Squad

Tempers go at Universitario

Lisandro Alzugaray 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.

Market

Universitario may not be able to give Hugo Ancajima what he wants

It is the most legitimate ambition in the sport and the hardest for most clubs to satisfy. Hugo Ancajima wants continental football; whether Universitario can provide it is a question about the next two seasons, not about him.

Squad

Jairo Concha 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.

Player ratings

Hugo Ancajima stands above it all

Some games turn on a moment; this one turned on a man. 7.25 on the card, and the Universitario support went home talking about one name.

Squad

Jairo Concha has to sit this one out

A booking nobody needed, on a night the game was already won. Universitario lose a player for the most avoidable reason there is.

Match

No goals between Universitario and Melgar

Ninety minutes, two goalkeepers with clean gloves, and not one finish worth keeping. Melgar will be the happier side with the point.

Market

The shop window has Gianluca Lapadula in it

Universitario have let the market know Gianluca Lapadula can be had. No price in the advert, but everyone in the trade knows roughly what it says.

In brief

44 Edition

The Universitario Gazette

31 May 2027
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Match

Still nobody has beaten Universitario

The unbeaten run reaches 18. Some of them were wins and some were escapes, but a side that refuses to lose is a side other dressing rooms talk about.

Squad

Williams Riveros breaks a bone — 84 days out

Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 84 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.

Player ratings

Jairo Concha runs at them all day

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.

Squad

Tempers go at Universitario

Alex Valera 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.

Match

Andy Polo the difference as Universitario beat Sport Huancayo

Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Andy Polo. 1‑0 against Sport Huancayo, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.

Player ratings

Ninety minutes of Andy Polo at his very best

Marked 8.20. Players have careers without a single afternoon like this in them, and he has just had one in front of everybody at Universitario.

In brief

39 Edition

The Universitario Gazette

26 Apr 2027
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

A fracture rules Williams Riveros out for 126 days

Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Universitario will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.

Match

Whatever happens, Universitario do not lose

13 games unbeaten now. Some were earned and some were survived, but a habit is forming — and habits are the hardest thing in football to play against.

Player ratings

Andy Polo runs at them all day

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.

Squad

Alex Valera 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 Universitario this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad

Words at Universitario training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Lisandro Alzugaray 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.

Player ratings

José Carabalí stands above it all

Some games turn on a moment; this one turned on a man. 7.16 on the card, and the Universitario support went home talking about one name.

In brief

37 Edition

The Universitario Gazette

12 Apr 2027
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Squad

A fracture rules Martín Pérez Guedes out for 49 days

Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Universitario will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.

Match

Alex Valera leads the rout of Deportivo Municipal

3‑0, and Alex Valera took the headlines on an afternoon when everything Universitario tried came off. Days like this are retold all winter.

Player ratings

A brace, and Alex Valera takes the afternoon — 9.08

There is a particular kind of quiet from an away end watching one man score twice. Alex Valera provided it, and the 9.08 beside his name is if anything generous to everybody else.

Match

Still nobody has beaten Universitario

The unbeaten run reaches 11. Some of them were wins and some were escapes, but a side that refuses to lose is a side other dressing rooms talk about.

Player ratings

Jairo Concha runs at them all day

Successful dribbles: 28. There is a particular sort of despair on a full-back's face by the seventieth minute, and it was on display.

Market

Edison Flores wants European nights

The general version of this complaint is that a player wants more. The specific version names the thing: he wants to walk out under floodlights against clubs from other countries, and he has stopped pretending otherwise.

Squad

Tempers go at Universitario

Alex Valera 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 ratings

One of those days for Bryan Reyna

There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.32, and no argument anywhere in the ground.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Gianluca Lapadula

“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.

In brief

36 Edition

The Universitario Gazette

5 Apr 2027
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Squad

A fracture rules Lisandro Alzugaray out for 14 days

Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Universitario will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.

Match

Still nobody has beaten Universitario

The unbeaten run reaches 10. Some of them were wins and some were escapes, but a side that refuses to lose is a side other dressing rooms talk about.

Market

Alex Valera wants European nights

The general version of this complaint is that a player wants more. The specific version names the thing: he wants to walk out under floodlights against clubs from other countries, and he has stopped pretending otherwise.

Squad

Alex Valera 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 Universitario this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Match

Universitario see off Melgar

Three points for Universitario, 1‑0 the final word against Melgar in a contest settled by the finer margins.

Player ratings

A masterclass from Jairo Concha

Marked 8.22 — 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.

In brief

31 Edition

The Universitario Gazette

1 Mar 2027
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Squad

A fracture rules Lisandro Alzugaray out for 53 days

Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Universitario will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.

Squad

Tempers go at Universitario

Alex Valera 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.

Match

Universitario get the job done against Alianza Lima

A 2‑0 win over Alianza Lima, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.

Squad

Anderson Santamaría 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.

Player ratings

A masterclass from Alex Valera

Marked 8.16 — 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.

Squad

The manager makes an example of Gianluca Lapadula

“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.

In brief

29 Edition

The Universitario Gazette

15 Feb 2027
From our football correspondent Upbeat

Squad

Lisandro Alzugaray breaks a bone — 70 days out

Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 70 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.

Player ratings

Nobody could get near Edison Flores

Successful dribbles: 31. Every time he got the ball somebody had to make a decision, and every time the decision was wrong.

Market

Edison Flores wants European nights

The general version of this complaint is that a player wants more. The specific version names the thing: he wants to walk out under floodlights against clubs from other countries, and he has stopped pretending otherwise.

Squad

Tempers go at Universitario

Alex Valera 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.

Match

Universitario get the job done against Juan Aurich

A 1‑0 win over Juan Aurich, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.

Player ratings

One of those days for Jairo Concha

There is a version of this player everybody suspected was in there, and on this evidence it is. 8.30, and no argument anywhere in the ground.

Loan watch

Rodrigo Dioses counts the days

“I watch every Universitario game from here. That says everything about where my head is.” The loan at Alianza Atletico runs its course, but his heart never made the trip.

Squad

Words at Universitario training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Christian Sánchez 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.

Squad

Universitario pick somebody else ahead of Gianluca Lapadula

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.

In brief

18 Edition

The Universitario Gazette

30 Nov 2026
From our football correspondent Uneasy

Squad

A fracture rules Bryan Reyna out for 40 days

Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Universitario will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.

Market

Alex Valera wants European nights

The general version of this complaint is that a player wants more. The specific version names the thing: he wants to walk out under floodlights against clubs from other countries, and he has stopped pretending otherwise.

Squad

Alex Valera 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 Universitario this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

In brief

2 Edition

The Universitario Gazette

10 Aug 2026
From our football correspondent Steady

Squad

Diego Romero breaks a bone — 106 days out

Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 106 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.

Market

Orlando City come back empty-handed

The bid was some way short and Universitario did not need long over it. Nobody in the game reads a first refusal as the end of anything.

Market

Edison Flores wants European nights

The general version of this complaint is that a player wants more. The specific version names the thing: he wants to walk out under floodlights against clubs from other countries, and he has stopped pretending otherwise.

Squad

Jesús Castillo signs on for more

“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Jesús Castillo and Universitario agree another 3 years.

Squad

Tempers go at Universitario

Alex Valera 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.

Market

Nobody at Universitario has picked up the phone to Andy Polo

36 months to run and not a word offered. A club that lets the calendar negotiate for it usually ends up losing to the calendar.

In brief