San Telmo U18

Squad3 Mar 2036

Ezequiel Correa stands alone

7 saves, and a scoreline the ten men in front of him had no right to. Goalkeepers only get noticed on the bad days; this was one of the other ones.

Squad3 Mar 2036

Agustín Nieto signs on for more

“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Agustín Nieto and San Telmo agree another 1 years.

Boardroom3 Mar 2036

$495.5K of the owner's money at San Telmo

The shortfall was covered from upstairs again. Supporters are entitled to be relieved and entitled to ask what happens the month it is not, and both feelings usually arrive together.

The dugout3 Mar 2036

Liam Peralta frozen out at San Telmo

This is not rotation. Liam Peralta has not been in the manager's plans for some time, and nobody at San Telmo is pretending otherwise.

The dugout3 Mar 2036

The manager makes an example of Isaías Jofré

“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.

Squad3 Mar 2036

A step back for Jerónimo Porto Lapegüe at San Telmo

Somebody has moved past him. It is not a dropping and it is worse than one, because a dropping is about a Saturday and this is about where he stands.

Match23 Feb 2036

Agustín Nieto among the goals in a wild afternoon

6 goals in one match, Agustín Nieto on the scoresheet, and a scoreline that will look like a misprint. Neutrals could not have asked more of San Telmo and UAI Urquiza.

Boardroom25 Feb 2036

San Telmo cannot sign anybody

The embargo bars a fee being paid for a player, whatever the manager thinks the squad needs. Every rumour printed about this club between now and its lifting is a rumour about a deal that cannot happen.

The dugout25 Feb 2036

Miguel Villalba 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.

Boardroom25 Feb 2036

Inquest at San Telmo

The manager kept them in and said what needed saying. A response is expected on Saturday, and if it does not come the questions move upstairs.

The dugout25 Feb 2036

Interim Coach: “No excuses”

“I could talk about decisions and I could talk about luck. I will not. We lost.” The manager, 1‑5, and a press conference that lasted four minutes.

Squad25 Feb 2036

A long afternoon for Ezequiel Correa

Beaten 5 times, with 5 saves for company. Goalkeepers carry these scorelines on their record whoever actually caused them, which is the quiet injustice of the job.

Squad18 Feb 2036

6 saves: Ezequiel Correa was the team

Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the whole of the defence. 6 saves, several of them the kind nobody expects to see made, and ten outfield players who owe him a drink.

The dugout18 Feb 2036

Miguel Villalba frozen out at San Telmo

This is not rotation. Miguel Villalba has not been in the manager's plans for some time, and nobody at San Telmo is pretending otherwise.

Match16 Feb 2036

San Telmo come up short against Temperley

Temperley left with the points after a 0‑1 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.

The dugout18 Feb 2036

The manager makes an example of Jefferson Giraldo

“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.

Boardroom18 Feb 2036

The borrowing at San Telmo reaches $15.8M

Past the limit the bank set, which is the line between a club being financed and a club being in trouble. $15.8M is now the number every conversation about this club will start with.

The dugout18 Feb 2036

Interim Coach: “No excuses”

“I could talk about decisions and I could talk about luck. I will not. We lost.” The manager, 0‑1, and a press conference that lasted four minutes.

Match9 Feb 2036

7 matches without a win for San Telmo

The run now stands at 7, and the questions being asked around San Telmo are no longer polite ones.

Match9 Feb 2036

7 matches without a goal for San Telmo

The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 7 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.

Match9 Feb 2036

San Telmo are shipping goals every week

Two or more conceded in each of the last 7 matches. It is not one mistake repeating itself, which would be the easier thing to fix; it is a different one every week.

Market11 Feb 2036

José Vidal 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 San Telmo, and it is not being withdrawn.

Squad11 Feb 2036

Appearance number 100 for Cristian Ríos

100 games in this shirt, through managers and relegations and everything else. Service like it is disappearing from the game and the crowd knows what it is watching.

The dugout11 Feb 2036

No hiding place for Sergio Serrano

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

Match2 Feb 2036

San Telmo are shipping goals every week

Two or more conceded in each of the last 6 matches. It is not one mistake repeating itself, which would be the easier thing to fix; it is a different one every week.

Boardroom4 Feb 2036

6 academy graduates step up at San Telmo

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.

Boardroom4 Feb 2036

The owner puts $359.8K into San Telmo

This is money that keeps the lights on rather than money that buys a centre-half, and the difference is the whole story. A club funded by its owner rather than by its football has exactly one conversation left ahead of it.

Match2 Feb 2036

San Telmo come up short against Colón

Colón left with the points after a 0‑2 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.

Market4 Feb 2036

San Telmo promote Valentín Vega from within

The academy exists for exactly this morning. Valentín Vega 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.

Market4 Feb 2036

San Telmo promote Luis Alberto Vázquez from within

The academy exists for exactly this morning. Luis Alberto Vázquez 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.

Market28 Jan 2036

The Lautaro Ibarra talk will not go away

Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. San Telmo know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.

The dugout28 Jan 2036

Juan Martín Flores knocks on the manager's door

“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at San Telmo, and both men came out saying it was fine.

Market28 Jan 2036

San Telmo put Juan Martín Flores up for sale

The list is a quiet document with a loud meaning. Juan Martín Flores may talk to anybody who asks, and everybody at the club understands what that means.

The dugout21 Jan 2036

Noah Gómez 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.

Market21 Jan 2036

Franco Aguirre linked with a move away

The name of Franco Aguirre keeps appearing in other people's back pages. San Telmo say nothing, which says plenty.

Market21 Jan 2036

Talks stall between San Telmo and Jefferson Giraldo

“We are a long way apart, and pretending otherwise helps nobody.” Neither side is close, and the calendar is not on the club's side.

Squad21 Jan 2036

Noah Gómez: “I am not a substitute”

“I have done everything asked of me in training and it has not changed a thing on a Saturday.” The most familiar complaint in football, and one San Telmo will have to answer with minutes or with a transfer.

The dugout21 Jan 2036

Juan Martín Flores knocks on the manager’s door

“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Juan Martín Flores trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.

Market21 Jan 2036

José Vidal placed on the list

San Telmo have made José Vidal available for transfer. A career at this club is over in all but paperwork.

Squad14 Jan 2036

No place for Bruno Costa in the new shape

He is not being dropped. There is simply nowhere in the formation San Telmo are playing to put a man who does what he does, which is a harder thing to be told than any team sheet.

Squad14 Jan 2036

Angel Tunchev wants to go home

“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and San Telmo know it.

Squad14 Jan 2036

A falling-out at San Telmo

Valentino Ferreyra and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Market14 Jan 2036

Jerónimo Porto Lapegüe linked with a move away

The name of Jerónimo Porto Lapegüe keeps appearing in other people's back pages. San Telmo say nothing, which says plenty.

Squad14 Jan 2036

Jerónimo Porto Lapegüe is doing the arithmetic

The table has started to be checked before the results are in, and that is always the tell. Nobody at San Telmo says the word out loud, and everybody in the building is thinking it.

Market14 Jan 2036

Window shut, Miguel Villalba still here

San Telmo spent the window trying to move Miguel Villalba on and nobody came. He trains with a squad that has already told him he is not part of it, and both sides now wait for the next one.

Market7 Jan 2036

Sergio Serrano asks to leave San Telmo

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Boardroom7 Jan 2036

The owner puts $397.4K into San Telmo

This is money that keeps the lights on rather than money that buys a centre-half, and the difference is the whole story. A club funded by its owner rather than by its football has exactly one conversation left ahead of it.

Transfer targets7 Jan 2036

Gimnasia La Plata tell San Telmo: Juan Manuel Flores is not for sale

The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.

The dugout7 Jan 2036

Liam Peralta frozen out at San Telmo

This is not rotation. Liam Peralta has not been in the manager's plans for some time, and nobody at San Telmo is pretending otherwise.

Squad7 Jan 2036

No place for Agustín Nieto in the new shape

He is not being dropped. There is simply nowhere in the formation San Telmo are playing to put a man who does what he does, which is a harder thing to be told than any team sheet.

Market7 Jan 2036

San Telmo and Bruno Costa are talking past each other

“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.

Boardroom31 Dec 2035

No signings allowed at San Telmo

The manager may talk to whoever he likes and may pay nobody. A squad survives a window like this by borrowing, by promoting, and by hoping the injuries land somewhere else.

Transfer targets31 Dec 2035

A loan move for Kevin Cuadrado is in the works

San Telmo have made the call to Arsenal. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.

Transfer targets31 Dec 2035

San Telmo ask about Fla

A loan enquiry to Talleres: cover, or a look at somebody the club cannot afford to buy yet. Either way the answer will come back inside the week.

The dugout31 Dec 2035

Miguel Villalba asks for a word with the manager

“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.

Market31 Dec 2035

The Isaías Jofré question follows San Telmo around

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

Market31 Dec 2035

The shop window has Angel Tunchev in it

San Telmo have let the market know Angel Tunchev can be had. No price in the advert, but everyone in the trade knows roughly what it says.

Transfer targets24 Dec 2035

San Telmo rebuffed over Ezequiel Quiroga

Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Unión de Santa Fe have kept their man, and San Telmo go back to a list with one name crossed off it.

Boardroom24 Dec 2035

The borrowing at San Telmo reaches $15.9M

Past the limit the bank set, which is the line between a club being financed and a club being in trouble. $15.9M is now the number every conversation about this club will start with.

Transfer targets24 Dec 2035

San Telmo ask about Tomás Ramos

A loan enquiry to Godoy Cruz: cover, or a look at somebody the club cannot afford to buy yet. Either way the answer will come back inside the week.

Market24 Dec 2035

San Telmo and Ivo Cabrera Branford are talking past each other

“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.

The dugout24 Dec 2035

Emiliano Rodríguez asks for a word with the manager

“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.

Market24 Dec 2035

Lautaro Ibarra linked with a move away

The name of Lautaro Ibarra keeps appearing in other people's back pages. San Telmo say nothing, which says plenty.

Transfer targets17 Dec 2035

San Telmo rebuffed over Noah Herrera

Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Independiente have kept their man, and San Telmo go back to a list with one name crossed off it.

Boardroom17 Dec 2035

106% of the income goes out in wages at San Telmo

Every club in football pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time somebody has tried it.

Transfer targets17 Dec 2035

A loan move for Ezequiel Quiroga is in the works

San Telmo have made the call to Unión de Santa Fe. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.

Transfer targets17 Dec 2035

San Telmo try to borrow Ezequiel López

Defensa y Justicia 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.

Squad17 Dec 2035

A falling-out at San Telmo

Valentino Ferreyra and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

The dugout17 Dec 2035

Emiliano Rodríguez knocks on the manager's door

“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at San Telmo, and both men came out saying it was fine.

Transfer targets10 Dec 2035

Door shut on Hernán Figueroa

San Telmo asked and Godoy Cruz said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.

Market10 Dec 2035

The clock does Luis Montecinos’s negotiating for him

1 months left, and both sides know what that means: every week without a signature, the fee San Telmo could ask drops and the wages Luis Montecinos can ask rise.

Market10 Dec 2035

The Jerónimo Porto Lapegüe talk will not go away

Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. San Telmo know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.

The dugout10 Dec 2035

When it matters, Cristian Herrera 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.

The dugout10 Dec 2035

Daniel Sánchez knocks on the manager’s door

“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Daniel Sánchez trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.

Boardroom10 Dec 2035

The San Telmo production line keeps running

74 graduates out of an academy now rated 4 out of 20. Clubs this size survive on exactly that, and the town knows every name.

Boardroom3 Dec 2035

Crisis meeting at San Telmo

The official line will be that it was routine. It was not routine, the timing says so, and every person in that room knows what the next bad result costs.

Squad3 Dec 2035

Jerónimo Porto Lapegüe stays put

“The easiest signature of my career.” Jerónimo Porto Lapegüe and San Telmo agree another 2 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.

Squad3 Dec 2035

Words exchanged at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen 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.

Boardroom3 Dec 2035

$506.0K of the owner's money at San Telmo

The shortfall was covered from upstairs again. Supporters are entitled to be relieved and entitled to ask what happens the month it is not, and both feelings usually arrive together.

Transfer targets3 Dec 2035

San Telmo rebuffed over Juan Manuel Flores

Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Gimnasia La Plata have kept their man, and San Telmo go back to a list with one name crossed off it.

Boardroom3 Dec 2035

No signings allowed at San Telmo

The manager may talk to whoever he likes and may pay nobody. A squad survives a window like this by borrowing, by promoting, and by hoping the injuries land somewhere else.

Boardroom26 Nov 2035

San Telmo are $16.5M in the red

The borrowing is past what the bank agreed, which is the line where a debt stops being how football is financed and starts being a problem. Every phone-in in this town will quote the figure for the next five years.

The dugout26 Nov 2035

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen asks for a word with the manager

“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.

The dugout26 Nov 2035

Juan Martín Flores 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.

Market26 Nov 2035

The Juan Cruz Zurbriggen story refuses to die

It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Juan Cruz Zurbriggen signs something — a contract at San Telmo or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.

Market26 Nov 2035

The shop window has Sergio Serrano in it

San Telmo have let the market know Sergio Serrano can be had. No price in the advert, but everyone in the trade knows roughly what it says.

Squad26 Nov 2035

Juan Martín Flores has had enough of the bench

“I did not come here to warm up in front of people.” He is out of contract eventually, he is old enough to count the weeks, and San Telmo will have to give him a reason to stay or an exit.

Squad19 Nov 2035

San Telmo count the cost of losing Sergio Serrano

15 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.

Boardroom19 Nov 2035

Wages eat 146% of everything San Telmo earn

There is a figure at which a wage bill stops being ambitious and becomes the reason nothing else is possible, and this club has reached it. Nothing is left over for a transfer, a stand or a rainy afternoon.

Squad19 Nov 2035

Ludwig Larsson wants to go home

“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at San Telmo can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.

The dugout19 Nov 2035

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen asks for a word with the manager

“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.

Market19 Nov 2035

Isaías Jofré linked with a move away

The name of Isaías Jofré keeps appearing in other people's back pages. San Telmo say nothing, which says plenty.

The dugout19 Nov 2035

Ezequiel Marino gets picked when it counts

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 Ezequiel Marino is on it.

The dugout12 Nov 2035

Miguel Villalba asks for a word with the manager

“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.

Market12 Nov 2035

The Jerónimo Porto Lapegüe talk will not go away

Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. San Telmo know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.

Market12 Nov 2035

The clock does Luis Montecinos’s negotiating for him

2 months left, and both sides know what that means: every week without a signature, the fee San Telmo could ask drops and the wages Luis Montecinos can ask rise.

The dugout12 Nov 2035

When it matters, Cristian Herrera 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.

Squad12 Nov 2035

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen is doing the arithmetic

The table has started to be checked before the results are in, and that is always the tell. Nobody at San Telmo says the word out loud, and everybody in the building is thinking it.

Market12 Nov 2035

San Telmo put Valentino Ferreyra up for sale

The list is a quiet document with a loud meaning. Valentino Ferreyra may talk to anybody who asks, and everybody at the club understands what that means.

Market5 Nov 2035

Sergio Serrano asks to leave San Telmo

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Squad5 Nov 2035

Words exchanged at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen 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.

Boardroom5 Nov 2035

The owner puts $607.9K into San Telmo

This is money that keeps the lights on rather than money that buys a centre-half, and the difference is the whole story. A club funded by its owner rather than by its football has exactly one conversation left ahead of it.

Boardroom5 Nov 2035

San Telmo cannot sign anybody

The embargo bars a fee being paid for a player, whatever the manager thinks the squad needs. Every rumour printed about this club between now and its lifting is a rumour about a deal that cannot happen.

Market5 Nov 2035

Still no ink between San Telmo and Ezequiel Correa

“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at San Telmo, another week without a signature from Ezequiel Correa.

The dugout5 Nov 2035

The manager's exit leaves Lautaro Ibarra exposed

Every squad has men who were signed by a particular manager and men who were merely inherited. Lautaro Ibarra is in the first group, and the man who wanted him here is no longer in the building.

Squad29 Oct 2035

Valentino Ferreyra 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 San Telmo this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

The dugout29 Oct 2035

Emiliano Rodríguez knocks on the manager’s door

“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Emiliano Rodríguez trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.

Market29 Oct 2035

Franco Aguirre linked with a move away

The name of Franco Aguirre keeps appearing in other people's back pages. San Telmo say nothing, which says plenty.

Market29 Oct 2035

Sergio Serrano placed on the list

San Telmo have made Sergio Serrano available for transfer. A career at this club is over in all but paperwork.

Squad29 Oct 2035

The training reports on Gustavo Navarro are not good

A bad Saturday is forgiven; a bad Tuesday is chosen. Standards have slipped and in a building where everybody watches everybody, it has been noticed.

Squad29 Oct 2035

Angel Tunchev takes up the language

The least glamorous thing a foreign signing ever does and the one that decides most of them. A player who can hear the shout behind him is a different footballer from one who cannot.

Boardroom22 Oct 2035

165% of the income goes out in wages at San Telmo

Every club in football pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time somebody has tried it.

Market22 Oct 2035

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen linked with a move away

The name of Juan Cruz Zurbriggen keeps appearing in other people's back pages. San Telmo say nothing, which says plenty.

The dugout22 Oct 2035

Ezequiel Marino gets picked when it counts

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 Ezequiel Marino is on it.

Squad15 Oct 2035

Jerónimo Porto Lapegüe is not the player he was

It happens to all of them and it is still the hardest paragraph a local paper has to write. 34 years old, 3 points down on where he was, and a body that has started charging interest on a career.

The dugout15 Oct 2035

A promise honoured at San Telmo

Something was said to Ivo Cabrera Branford and then it happened. In this industry that passes for remarkable, and the dressing room noticed faster than any supporter could.

Market15 Oct 2035

The Jerónimo Porto Lapegüe talk will not go away

Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. San Telmo know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.

Market15 Oct 2035

Luis Montecinos runs his contract down

3 months remain and no agreement is close. Every week without a signature costs San Telmo money.

The dugout15 Oct 2035

Cristian Herrera has become a man the manager trusts

Nobody at San Telmo 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.

Squad15 Oct 2035

A season on the outside for Angel Tunchev

He trains hard, says the right things and goes home to an empty flat. Nobody at San Telmo has done anything wrong, which is exactly what makes it so difficult to fix.

Match8 Oct 2035

Full time on the season at San Telmo

Position 16 on 22 points. Every season is a story and this is the last line of it, and now the club has three months to decide what the next one is about.

Boardroom8 Oct 2035

Crisis meeting at San Telmo

The official line will be that it was routine. It was not routine, the timing says so, and every person in that room knows what the next bad result costs.

Market8 Oct 2035

Sergio Serrano 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 San Telmo, and it is not being withdrawn.

Match6 Oct 2035

5 matches without a win for San Telmo

The run now stands at 5, and the questions being asked around San Telmo are no longer polite ones.

Match6 Oct 2035

5 matches without a goal for San Telmo

The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 5 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.

Squad8 Oct 2035

Words exchanged at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen 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.

Market1 Oct 2035

Valentino Ferreyra asks to leave San Telmo

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Match29 Sep 2035

4 matches without a win for San Telmo

The run now stands at 4, and the questions being asked around San Telmo are no longer polite ones.

Squad1 Oct 2035

A falling-out at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Match29 Sep 2035

4 matches without a goal for San Telmo

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.

Match29 Sep 2035

San Telmo are shipping goals every week

Two or more conceded in each of the last 4 matches. It is not one mistake repeating itself, which would be the easier thing to fix; it is a different one every week.

The dugout1 Oct 2035

The manager makes an example of Jerónimo Porto Lapegüe

“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.

Market24 Sep 2035

Liam Peralta asks to leave San Telmo

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Match22 Sep 2035

San Telmo cannot find the net

3 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.

Boardroom24 Sep 2035

180% of the income goes out in wages at San Telmo

Every club in football pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time somebody has tried it.

The dugout24 Sep 2035

Ivo Cabrera Branford 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.

Boardroom24 Sep 2035

Inquest at San Telmo

The manager kept them in and said what needed saying. A response is expected on Saturday, and if it does not come the questions move upstairs.

The dugout24 Sep 2035

Interim Coach: “No excuses”

“I could talk about decisions and I could talk about luck. I will not. We lost.” The manager, 0‑3, and a press conference that lasted four minutes.

Market17 Sep 2035

Miguel Villalba 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 San Telmo can pretend not to have heard.

Squad17 Sep 2035

Words exchanged at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen 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 dugout17 Sep 2035

No hiding place for Isaías Jofré

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

Boardroom17 Sep 2035

Doors closed at San Telmo

The music was off and the showers ran late. What was said in that dressing room stays there, but Saturday will publish the minutes.

Squad17 Sep 2035

Ludwig Larsson wants to go home

“I have tried. I have really tried, and every day I wake up in the wrong place.” Nobody at San Telmo can coach that out of a man, and nobody there is pretending to.

The dugout17 Sep 2035

Interim Coach: “No excuses”

“I could talk about decisions and I could talk about luck. I will not. We lost.” The manager, 0‑4, and a press conference that lasted four minutes.

Squad3 Sep 2035

Franco Aguirre has been here 11 seasons

318 appearances across 11 seasons in one shirt. Nobody builds a career like that on purpose any more; it happens to a certain kind of footballer at a certain kind of club.

The dugout3 Sep 2035

Miguel Villalba frozen out at San Telmo

This is not rotation. Miguel Villalba has not been in the manager's plans for some time, and nobody at San Telmo is pretending otherwise.

Squad3 Sep 2035

Lautaro Ibarra signs a new deal

“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Lautaro Ibarra commits to San Telmo for another 2 years.

Boardroom3 Sep 2035

The owner puts $725.8K into San Telmo

This is money that keeps the lights on rather than money that buys a centre-half, and the difference is the whole story. A club funded by its owner rather than by its football has exactly one conversation left ahead of it.

Boardroom3 Sep 2035

San Telmo are $17.1M in the red

The borrowing is past what the bank agreed, which is the line where a debt stops being how football is financed and starts being a problem. Every phone-in in this town will quote the figure for the next five years.

The dugout3 Sep 2035

The manager makes an example of Sergio Serrano

“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.

Squad13 Aug 2035

Tempers go at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen 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 dugout13 Aug 2035

The manager makes an example of Lautaro Ibarra

“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.

Boardroom13 Aug 2035

Embargo at San Telmo

No fees may be paid for anybody, whatever the squad needs. Every rumour about this club until it lifts is a rumour about a deal that cannot be done.

Boardroom13 Aug 2035

Doors closed at San Telmo

The music was off and the showers ran late. What was said in that dressing room stays there, but Saturday will publish the minutes.

The dugout13 Aug 2035

Interim Coach faces the questions

“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Interim Coach after 0‑3, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.

Market13 Aug 2035

San Telmo put Juan Cruz Zurbriggen up for sale

The list is a quiet document with a loud meaning. Juan Cruz Zurbriggen may talk to anybody who asks, and everybody at the club understands what that means.

The dugout6 Aug 2035

Miguel Villalba frozen out at San Telmo

This is not rotation. Miguel Villalba has not been in the manager's plans for some time, and nobody at San Telmo is pretending otherwise.

Market6 Aug 2035

Liam Peralta asks to leave San Telmo

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Boardroom6 Aug 2035

$760.7K from the owner keeps San Telmo afloat

The gap in the accounts was filled from upstairs again. Supporters are entitled to be grateful and to ask what happens the month it is not, and both feelings arrive together.

Match4 Aug 2035

San Telmo rescue it on 94 minutes

Behind, and beaten by any honest reading, until minute 94. Almirante Brown had the points in their pocket and a corner of the ground still believed, which is generally when it happens.

Boardroom6 Aug 2035

The borrowing at San Telmo reaches $17.2M

Past the limit the bank set, which is the line between a club being financed and a club being in trouble. $17.2M is now the number every conversation about this club will start with.

Squad6 Aug 2035

Pedro Luna out for 21 days

The medical room confirms 21 days on the sidelines for Pedro Luna, and a plan built around him now has to be rebuilt.

Squad30 Jul 2035

A one-man rearguard from Ezequiel Correa

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.

Market30 Jul 2035

Ezequiel Marino asks to leave San Telmo

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Squad30 Jul 2035

A falling-out at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Transfer targets30 Jul 2035

Lanús tell San Telmo: Pablo Ramírez is not for sale

The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.

Boardroom30 Jul 2035

Wages swallow 167% of the San Telmo income

Every club pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time it has been tried.

Market30 Jul 2035

Ricardo Suárez steps up from the San Telmo academy

There is no fee, no unveiling and no agent on the steps. Ricardo Suárez 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.

Boardroom23 Jul 2035

Deadline passes with 0 signed and 10 gone

That is the business done at San Telmo until the window opens again. Whether it was enough will be answered on Saturdays rather than in a column, and the first Saturday is close.

Transfer targets23 Jul 2035

The paperwork begins on Julián Ibáñez

A medical, a signature, a shirt held up in front of a sponsor’s board. San Telmo have done the hard part with Talleres, and the part that remains is the part supporters actually see.

Transfer targets23 Jul 2035

Door shut on Massimo Saliszewski

San Telmo asked and Villa San Carlos said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.

Match21 Jul 2035

San Telmo find a way past Chacarita Juniors

Chacarita Juniors made San Telmo work for it, but the scoreboard read 2‑0 at the end and the table does not ask how.

Match21 Jul 2035

San Telmo end the wait against Chacarita Juniors

It had gone 5 games. The players did not celebrate like men who had won a match; they celebrated like men who had been let out of something.

The dugout23 Jul 2035

The manager makes an example of Luis Montecinos

“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.

Match14 Jul 2035

The goals have deserted San Telmo

3 matches, no goals, and a training ground that has tried everything. It will end — droughts always do — but nobody at San Telmo can tell you which week it ends in.

Transfer targets16 Jul 2035

Platense tell San Telmo: Marcos Cabrobó is not for sale

The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.

Match14 Jul 2035

A bad afternoon for San Telmo against Estudiantes

0‑2 to Estudiantes, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.

The dugout16 Jul 2035

No hiding place for Lautaro Ibarra

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

Boardroom16 Jul 2035

San Telmo cannot sign anybody

The embargo bars a fee being paid for a player, whatever the manager thinks the squad needs. Every rumour printed about this club between now and its lifting is a rumour about a deal that cannot happen.

Squad16 Jul 2035

Words at San Telmo training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Tomás Rossi 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.

Match7 Jul 2035

The wait goes on for San Telmo

4 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.

Squad9 Jul 2035

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen 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 San Telmo this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Transfer targets9 Jul 2035

Gimnasia La Plata tell San Telmo: Juan Manuel Flores is not for sale

The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.

Squad9 Jul 2035

A row about effort at San Telmo

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Tomás Rossi was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Boardroom9 Jul 2035

San Telmo are $17.0M in the red

The borrowing is past what the bank agreed, which is the line where a debt stops being how football is financed and starts being a problem. Every phone-in in this town will quote the figure for the next five years.

Boardroom9 Jul 2035

Inquest at San Telmo

The manager kept them in and said what needed saying. A response is expected on Saturday, and if it does not come the questions move upstairs.

Match2 Jul 2035

Every point is an argument now for San Telmo

Position 16 and 12 points, and the table gets read bottom-up in this part of town. The calendar has stopped being a schedule and started being a countdown.

Market2 Jul 2035

San Telmo say no — this time

The offer from Morón for Juan Cruz Zurbriggen 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.

The dugout2 Jul 2035

Angel Tunchev keeps the receipts

“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” San Telmo may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.

Transfer targets2 Jul 2035

The paperwork begins on Tomás Ramos

A medical, a signature, a shirt held up in front of a sponsor’s board. San Telmo have done the hard part with Godoy Cruz, and the part that remains is the part supporters actually see.

Transfer targets2 Jul 2035

Emiliano Campos turns down San Telmo

The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: Vélez keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.

Squad2 Jul 2035

A falling-out at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Squad25 Jun 2035

Words exchanged at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen 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.

Transfer targets25 Jun 2035

San Telmo rebuffed over Mario Lucero

Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Banfield have kept their man, and San Telmo go back to a list with one name crossed off it.

Squad25 Jun 2035

Words at San Telmo training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Tomás Rossi 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.

Transfer targets25 Jun 2035

San Telmo try to borrow Emiliano Campos

Vélez 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.

Transfer targets25 Jun 2035

A loan move for Tomás Ramos is in the works

San Telmo have made the call to Godoy Cruz. No fee, a share of the wages, and a spare shirt in the position where the squad has been thinnest all season.

Transfer targets25 Jun 2035

San Telmo try to borrow Malevo

Boca Juniors 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.

Squad18 Jun 2035

Tempers go at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen 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.

Transfer targets18 Jun 2035

Door shut on Pablo Ramírez

San Telmo asked and Lanús said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.

Match16 Jun 2035

A bad afternoon for San Telmo against Dock Sud

0‑2 to Dock Sud, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.

Boardroom18 Jun 2035

Embargo at San Telmo

No fees may be paid for anybody, whatever the squad needs. Every rumour about this club until it lifts is a rumour about a deal that cannot be done.

The dugout18 Jun 2035

The manager’s verdict

“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 0‑2 Interim Coach left the room before anybody could ask which.

Transfer targets18 Jun 2035

San Telmo ask about Raúl Lucero

A loan enquiry to Defensa y Justicia: cover, or a look at somebody the club cannot afford to buy yet. Either way the answer will come back inside the week.

Market11 Jun 2035

José Aguirre asks to leave San Telmo

“I have given everything here and I need a new challenge.” The request is formal, and the relationship will never be quite the same again.

Transfer targets11 Jun 2035

Gallito is a medical away from San Telmo

The deal with Godoy Cruz 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.

Squad11 Jun 2035

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen 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 San Telmo this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Transfer targets11 Jun 2035

Tigre tell San Telmo: Pedro Ruiz is not for sale

The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.

Match9 Jun 2035

San Telmo find a way past Colón

Colón made San Telmo work for it, but the scoreboard read 2‑1 at the end and the table does not ask how.

The terraces11 Jun 2035

San Telmo supporters have found a favourite in Daniel Sánchez

There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 19-year-old it feels ownership of. Daniel Sánchez 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.

Squad4 Jun 2035

Daniel Sánchez stands alone

8 saves, and a scoreline the ten men in front of him had no right to. Goalkeepers only get noticed on the bad days; this was one of the other ones.

Match4 Jun 2035

San Telmo are in real trouble now

Position 16, 8 points, and a fixture list with fewer games left in it than excuses. The arithmetic is not cruel yet, but it has stopped being kind.

Match2 Jun 2035

5 matches without a win for San Telmo

The run now stands at 5, and the questions being asked around San Telmo are no longer polite ones.

Match2 Jun 2035

San Telmo are shipping goals every week

Two or more conceded in each of the last 5 matches. It is not one mistake repeating itself, which would be the easier thing to fix; it is a different one every week.

Boardroom4 Jun 2035

$691.9K of the owner's money at San Telmo

The shortfall was covered from upstairs again. Supporters are entitled to be relieved and entitled to ask what happens the month it is not, and both feelings usually arrive together.

Transfer targets4 Jun 2035

San Telmo rebuffed over Juan Manuel Flores

Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Gimnasia La Plata have kept their man, and San Telmo go back to a list with one name crossed off it.

Market28 May 2035

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen is on his way

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

Match26 May 2035

No end in sight to San Telmo's wait for a win

4 matches now without a victory, and the excuses have worn thinner than the patience. Somebody at San Telmo has to find a result from somewhere.

Match26 May 2035

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen among the goals in a wild afternoon

9 goals in one match, Juan Cruz Zurbriggen on the scoresheet, and a scoreline that will look like a misprint. Neutrals could not have asked more of San Telmo and Instituto.

Match26 May 2035

No clean sheets in sight for San Telmo

4 games now with at least two against. The back line has been rearranged, the goalkeeper has been backed publicly, and the goals keep going in anyway.

Squad28 May 2035

A row about effort at San Telmo

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Tomás Rossi was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

The dugout28 May 2035

No hiding place for Tomás Rossi

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

Squad21 May 2035

Tempers go at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen 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.

Boardroom21 May 2035

Embargo at San Telmo

No fees may be paid for anybody, whatever the squad needs. Every rumour about this club until it lifts is a rumour about a deal that cannot be done.

The dugout21 May 2035

The manager makes an example of Miguel Villalba

“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.

Squad21 May 2035

Home is on Ludwig Larsson's mind

“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; San Telmo are dealing with a man who wants a different country.

Boardroom21 May 2035

Doors closed at San Telmo

The music was off and the showers ran late. What was said in that dressing room stays there, but Saturday will publish the minutes.

The dugout21 May 2035

Interim Coach faces the questions

“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Interim Coach after 0‑3, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.

Match12 May 2035

San Telmo come up short against Barracas Central

Barracas Central left with the points after a 0‑2 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.

Squad14 May 2035

Tomás Rossi 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.

Boardroom14 May 2035

San Telmo are $16.9M in the red

The borrowing is past what the bank agreed, which is the line where a debt stops being how football is financed and starts being a problem. Every phone-in in this town will quote the figure for the next five years.

Squad14 May 2035

Home is on Angel Tunchev's mind

“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; San Telmo are dealing with a man who wants a different country.

Market14 May 2035

Still no ink between San Telmo and Dayron Contuliano

“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at San Telmo, another week without a signature from Dayron Contuliano.

The dugout14 May 2035

Interim Coach: “No excuses”

“I could talk about decisions and I could talk about luck. I will not. We lost.” The manager, 0‑2, and a press conference that lasted four minutes.

Squad7 May 2035

Dayron Contuliano stands alone

8 saves, and a scoreline the ten men in front of him had no right to. Goalkeepers only get noticed on the bad days; this was one of the other ones.

The dugout7 May 2035

Ludwig Larsson keeps the receipts

“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” San Telmo may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.

Player ratings7 May 2035

A defender's goal wins it for San Telmo — 7.42

1 for Isaías Jofré, marked 7.42, 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.

Squad7 May 2035

Jerónimo Porto Lapegüe signs a new deal

“I never wanted to be anywhere else. There is unfinished business here.” Jerónimo Porto Lapegüe commits to San Telmo for another 2 years.

Squad7 May 2035

A falling-out at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Boardroom7 May 2035

The owner puts $657.3K into San Telmo

This is money that keeps the lights on rather than money that buys a centre-half, and the difference is the whole story. A club funded by its owner rather than by its football has exactly one conversation left ahead of it.

Boardroom30 Apr 2035

The scrutiny sharpens at San Telmo

Nobody upstairs has said anything, which is the loudest thing they could do. Results buy silence in this game; the account at San Telmo is running low.

Player ratings30 Apr 2035

Age has not caught Franco Aguirre yet — 8.15

At 35 he is supposed to be managing his minutes. Instead he was marked 8.15 and looked, for ninety minutes, exactly like the player everybody remembers.

Squad30 Apr 2035

Words exchanged at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen 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.

Match28 Apr 2035

Franco Aguirre the difference as San Telmo beat Gimnasia y Esgrima

Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Franco Aguirre. 1‑0 against Gimnasia y Esgrima, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.

The dugout30 Apr 2035

Dayron Contuliano 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.

The dugout30 Apr 2035

The view from the dugout

“We controlled it. There were spells I did not like and we will look at them, but the group showed me something.” Interim Coach, on a 1‑0 win that he was already picking apart on the walk to the press room.

Match21 Apr 2035

Nowhere to hide for San Telmo

0‑3 against Estudiantes, and no complaints that would survive the replay. The manager spoke about character afterwards; the terraces used shorter words.

Match23 Apr 2035

San Telmo sink to position 17

5 points, and a fixture list that is running out. The mathematics are not yet cruel, but they are no longer kind.

The terraces23 Apr 2035

A cup hiding at San Lorenzo leaves San Telmo explaining themselves

0-6, and long before the end the away end had switched from encouragement to something considerably more pointed. Nobody rings a phone-in about losing narrowly.

Squad23 Apr 2035

Tempers go at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen 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.

Match18 Apr 2035

Nobody could stop scoring

6 goals. Both benches spent the second half looking at each other rather than at the pitch. Purists will complain about San Telmo and San Lorenzo in equal measure; everybody else had a wonderful time.

Match21 Apr 2035

3 matches without a goal for San Telmo

The chances are being made and something is happening between the making and the finishing. 3 matches now, and the anxiety in the ground arrives a little earlier every week.

Player ratings16 Apr 2035

Both jobs done by Aldo Garces — 6.67

A midfielder is measured on whether the team functions when he is on the pitch, which is nearly impossible to see and completely obvious in retrospect. 12 actions, 6.67, and a manager who will not be substituting him again in a hurry.

The dugout16 Apr 2035

The manager makes an example of Juan Cruz Zurbriggen

“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.

Squad16 Apr 2035

A row about effort at San Telmo

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Tomás Rossi was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Boardroom16 Apr 2035

Nobody left the San Telmo dressing room in a hurry

The door stayed shut a long time after the final whistle. What was said in there is between them; whether it worked is between them and Saturday.

Squad16 Apr 2035

Dayron Contuliano lets one through his hands

A defender's mistake gets tidied up by somebody else; a goalkeeper's ends up in the net. He knew before the ball crossed the line, and so did everybody in the ground.

The dugout16 Apr 2035

Interim Coach answers for it

“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 0‑3, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.

Player ratings9 Apr 2035

Franco Aguirre, 35, rolls back the years — 7.97

There is an age at which every good afternoon gets described as a throwback, which is unfair and also accurate. 7.97 at 35, and nobody on the pitch was better.

Match7 Apr 2035

Franco Aguirre among the goals in a wild afternoon

6 goals in one match, Franco Aguirre on the scoresheet, and a scoreline that will look like a misprint. Neutrals could not have asked more of San Telmo and Almirante Brown.

Match7 Apr 2035

Franco Aguirre’s goal not enough for San Telmo

Franco Aguirre scored, and precious little else went right: 2‑4 to Almirante Brown, and a quiet walk to the dressing room.

The dugout9 Apr 2035

No hiding place for Miguel Villalba

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

Boardroom9 Apr 2035

Wages eat 128% of everything San Telmo earn

There is a figure at which a wage bill stops being ambitious and becomes the reason nothing else is possible, and this club has reached it. Nothing is left over for a transfer, a stand or a rainy afternoon.

Boardroom9 Apr 2035

San Telmo are $16.8M in the red

The borrowing is past what the bank agreed, which is the line where a debt stops being how football is financed and starts being a problem. Every phone-in in this town will quote the figure for the next five years.

Squad2 Apr 2035

Words exchanged at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen 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.

Boardroom2 Apr 2035

$613.4K from the owner keeps San Telmo afloat

The gap in the accounts was filled from upstairs again. Supporters are entitled to be grateful and to ask what happens the month it is not, and both feelings arrive together.

Squad2 Apr 2035

A row about effort at San Telmo

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Tomás Rossi was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Market2 Apr 2035

Still no ink between San Telmo and Dayron Contuliano

“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at San Telmo, another week without a signature from Dayron Contuliano.

Squad2 Apr 2035

Aldo Garces makes the team of the month

Four or five weekends of consistency, measured against everybody else in the division. A quieter compliment than an award and a more reliable one.

Market2 Apr 2035

The Lautaro Ibarra talk will not go away

Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. San Telmo know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.

Squad19 Mar 2035

Ludwig Larsson wants to go home

“I have given this everything, but my family is not here and neither am I, not really.” A footballer can be coached out of bad form. Nobody has ever been coached out of this, and San Telmo know it.

The dugout19 Mar 2035

The manager makes an example of Juan Cruz Zurbriggen

“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.

Match17 Mar 2035

A bad afternoon for San Telmo against Chacarita Juniors

0‑1 to Chacarita Juniors, and no complaints worth printing. The performance asked for nothing more than it got.

Squad19 Mar 2035

San Telmo count the cost of losing Noah Gómez

33 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.

The dugout19 Mar 2035

Interim Coach faces the questions

“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Interim Coach after 0‑1, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.

The dugout19 Mar 2035

Angel Tunchev dropped after a run of poor form

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.

Squad5 Mar 2035

Words exchanged at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen 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.

Match3 Mar 2035

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen’s goal not enough for San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen scored, and precious little else went right: 1‑3 to Villa Dálmine, and a quiet walk to the dressing room.

Boardroom5 Mar 2035

$649.4K of the owner's money at San Telmo

The shortfall was covered from upstairs again. Supporters are entitled to be relieved and entitled to ask what happens the month it is not, and both feelings usually arrive together.

The dugout5 Mar 2035

No hiding place for Isaías Jofré

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

Squad5 Mar 2035

Tomás Rossi 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.

Market5 Mar 2035

Emiliano Rodríguez told to find a new club

“They were honest with me, and I would rather know.” Emiliano Rodríguez has been informed he is not in the manager's thinking at San Telmo.

Squad26 Feb 2035

A one-man rearguard from Dayron Contuliano

There were 7 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.

Match24 Feb 2035

The goals have deserted San Telmo

3 matches, no goals, and a training ground that has tried everything. It will end — droughts always do — but nobody at San Telmo can tell you which week it ends in.

Squad26 Feb 2035

Tomás Rossi is not the player he was

It happens to all of them and it is still the hardest paragraph a local paper has to write. 35 years old, 3 points down on where he was, and a body that has started charging interest on a career.

Boardroom26 Feb 2035

Embargo at San Telmo

No fees may be paid for anybody, whatever the squad needs. Every rumour about this club until it lifts is a rumour about a deal that cannot be done.

The dugout26 Feb 2035

Miguel Villalba 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.

Boardroom26 Feb 2035

Doors closed at San Telmo

The music was off and the showers ran late. What was said in that dressing room stays there, but Saturday will publish the minutes.

The dugout19 Feb 2035

Angel Tunchev 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.

The dugout19 Feb 2035

Interim Coach faces the questions

“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Interim Coach after 0‑1, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.

Squad19 Feb 2035

San Telmo are still strangers to each other

6 new signings in one window. Every one may be an upgrade and the side can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild the verdicts never mention.

Squad19 Feb 2035

Ludwig Larsson has had enough of the bench

“I did not come here to warm up in front of people.” He is out of contract eventually, he is old enough to count the weeks, and San Telmo will have to give him a reason to stay or an exit.

Looking ahead19 Feb 2035

Ivo Cabrera Branford goes back to face UAI Urquiza

Every squad has one of these fixtures for somebody every season. This one is Ivo Cabrera Branford’s: the club that knew him first, the supporters who will decide in the first minute whether to applaud, and San Telmo needing him to play as if none of it matters.

Market19 Feb 2035

Jerónimo Porto Lapegüe linked with a move away

The name of Jerónimo Porto Lapegüe keeps appearing in other people's back pages. San Telmo say nothing, which says plenty.

Squad12 Feb 2035

Time is catching up with Jerónimo Porto Lapegüe

Everybody at San Telmo saw it before anybody said it, which is how this always goes. At 33 the decline is real and measurable — 3 points — and the only question left is how the club handles somebody it owes a great deal to.

Boardroom12 Feb 2035

Still nobody in the San Telmo dugout

11 days with the chair empty, a list of names that grows and shrinks by the day, and not one signature on anything. Every week that passes takes the best candidates off it.

The dugout12 Feb 2035

No hiding place for Jerónimo Porto Lapegüe

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

Squad12 Feb 2035

A row about effort at San Telmo

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Tomás Rossi was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Boardroom12 Feb 2035

The San Telmo debt reaches $16.9M

Football clubs borrow; that is not the story. Borrowing more than the facility allows is, because from here it is the owner's money or somebody else's decision, and neither of those belongs to the board.

Boardroom12 Feb 2035

Nobody left the San Telmo dressing room in a hurry

The door stayed shut a long time after the final whistle. What was said in there is between them; whether it worked is between them and Saturday.

Squad29 Jan 2035

A row about effort at San Telmo

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Tomás Rossi was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

The dugout29 Jan 2035

Ricardo Moreno 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.

Market29 Jan 2035

The shop window has Tomás Rossi in it

San Telmo have let the market know Tomás Rossi can be had. No price in the advert, but everyone in the trade knows roughly what it says.

Market29 Jan 2035

The Franco Aguirre question follows San Telmo around

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

Market29 Jan 2035

Tomás Rossi runs his contract down

6 months remain and no agreement is close. Every week without a signature costs San Telmo money.

The dugout29 Jan 2035

Gabriel Castro asks for a word with the manager

“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.

Squad22 Jan 2035

Franco Aguirre is slowing down

At 35, 3 points below where he was, and a body that has started charging interest. It happens to all of them and it is still the hardest paragraph on this page.

The dugout22 Jan 2035

Dayron Contuliano 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.

Squad22 Jan 2035

Words at San Telmo training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Tomás Rossi 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.

Market22 Jan 2035

San Telmo put Juan Cruz Zurbriggen up for sale

The list is a quiet document with a loud meaning. Juan Cruz Zurbriggen may talk to anybody who asks, and everybody at the club understands what that means.

The dugout22 Jan 2035

Isaías Jofré asks for a word with the manager

“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.

Market22 Jan 2035

Jerónimo Porto Lapegüe linked with a move away

The name of Jerónimo Porto Lapegüe keeps appearing in other people's back pages. San Telmo say nothing, which says plenty.

Transfer targets15 Jan 2035

Door shut on Joaquín Núñez

San Telmo asked and Vélez said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.

Market15 Jan 2035

San Telmo promote Luis Blanco from within

The academy exists for exactly this morning. Luis Blanco 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.

Market15 Jan 2035

One of our own: Martín Gómez joins the San Telmo first team

Clubs spend fortunes looking for players and occasionally find one down the corridor. Martín Gómez is that, and the reception he gets on his first appearance will be different in kind from the one any signing receives.

Market15 Jan 2035

San Telmo promote Tomás Sosa from within

The academy exists for exactly this morning. Tomás Sosa 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.

Boardroom15 Jan 2035

The San Telmo debt reaches $17.0M

Football clubs borrow; that is not the story. Borrowing more than the facility allows is, because from here it is the owner's money or somebody else's decision, and neither of those belongs to the board.

Squad15 Jan 2035

San Telmo count the cost of losing Gabriel Castro

14 days, the scan says, and scans are kinder than reality. The fixtures in that window have just become somebody else’s job.

Market8 Jan 2035

Only the photograph left for Juan Cruz Zurbriggen

Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Juan Cruz Zurbriggen will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around San Telmo the goodbyes have quietly begun.

Market8 Jan 2035

Comunicaciones come back empty-handed

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

Market8 Jan 2035

Miguel Gutiérrez 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 San Telmo can pretend not to have heard.

Squad8 Jan 2035

A falling-out at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Boardroom8 Jan 2035

The owner puts $535.0K into San Telmo

This is money that keeps the lights on rather than money that buys a centre-half, and the difference is the whole story. A club funded by its owner rather than by its football has exactly one conversation left ahead of it.

Transfer targets8 Jan 2035

River Plate tell San Telmo: Juan Pablo Costa is not for sale

The approach was made and the answer came back in a sentence. There is no number on the table because there was no number that would have been enough.

Boardroom1 Jan 2035

No signings allowed at San Telmo

The manager may talk to whoever he likes and may pay nobody. A squad survives a window like this by borrowing, by promoting, and by hoping the injuries land somewhere else.

Squad1 Jan 2035

Tomás Rossi 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.

Squad1 Jan 2035

The formation has left Luis Montecinos behind

Every shape has positions in it and this one does not have his. San Telmo will either change the shape, change his job, or change his club, and he is waiting to hear which.

The dugout1 Jan 2035

The manager's exit leaves Lautaro Ibarra exposed

Every squad has men who were signed by a particular manager and men who were merely inherited. Lautaro Ibarra is in the first group, and the man who wanted him here is no longer in the building.

The dugout1 Jan 2035

The manager makes an example of Gabriel Castro

“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.

Market1 Jan 2035

Tomás Rossi placed on the list

San Telmo have made Tomás Rossi available for transfer. A career at this club is over in all but paperwork.

Squad25 Dec 2034

Tempers go at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen 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.

Transfer targets25 Dec 2034

San Telmo rebuffed over Federico Ferrari

Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Boca Juniors have kept their man, and San Telmo go back to a list with one name crossed off it.

The dugout25 Dec 2034

No hiding place for Sergio García

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

Market25 Dec 2034

The Franco Aguirre question follows San Telmo around

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

Market25 Dec 2034

Still no signature from Dayron Contuliano

5 months left and the two sides are nowhere near each other. Every week this drags on takes money off what San Telmo could get for him.

The dugout25 Dec 2034

Daniel Sánchez asks for a word with the manager

“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.

Transfer targets18 Dec 2034

Door shut on Lautaro Navarro

San Telmo asked and Godoy Cruz said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.

Squad18 Dec 2034

Tomás Rossi 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.

Market18 Dec 2034

The ambition of Ivo Cabrera Branford outgrows San Telmo early

Signings arrive with a picture of the club in their head, and this one’s picture was bigger than the building. He will play well and he will be gone, in that order, and everybody knows it.

Squad18 Dec 2034

Emiliano Rodríguez is a square peg at San Telmo

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.

Transfer targets18 Dec 2034

San Telmo ask about Juan Torres

A loan enquiry to Independiente: cover, or a look at somebody the club cannot afford to buy yet. Either way the answer will come back inside the week.

Transfer targets18 Dec 2034

San Telmo try to borrow Malevo

Boca Juniors 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.

Transfer targets11 Dec 2034

Luis Alberto Ponce turns down San Telmo

The clubs had agreed and the player had not. A snub, and a public one: Talleres keep him, and the supporters here are left wondering what he had heard about the place.

Squad11 Dec 2034

A falling-out at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Squad11 Dec 2034

Franco Rodríguez 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.

Transfer targets11 Dec 2034

San Telmo rebuffed over Mati

Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. San Lorenzo have kept their man, and San Telmo go back to a list with one name crossed off it.

Squad11 Dec 2034

The decline has begun for Tomás Rossi

Everybody saw it before anybody said it. At 35 the numbers say 3 points down on what he was, and the question for San Telmo is how to handle a man they owe a great deal.

Boardroom11 Dec 2034

The San Telmo debt reaches $17.6M

Football clubs borrow; that is not the story. Borrowing more than the facility allows is, because from here it is the owner's money or somebody else's decision, and neither of those belongs to the board.

The dugout4 Dec 2034

Gonzalo Gamarra frozen out at San Telmo

This is not rotation. Gonzalo Gamarra has not been in the manager's plans for some time, and nobody at San Telmo is pretending otherwise.

Squad4 Dec 2034

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen 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 San Telmo this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Boardroom4 Dec 2034

The owner puts $712.0K into San Telmo

This is money that keeps the lights on rather than money that buys a centre-half, and the difference is the whole story. A club funded by its owner rather than by its football has exactly one conversation left ahead of it.

Transfer targets4 Dec 2034

Door shut on Carlos Alberto Villalba

San Telmo asked and River Plate said no without discussing a figure. It is the least ambiguous answer in football and the one clubs most often come back to test.

Boardroom4 Dec 2034

San Telmo cannot sign anybody

The embargo bars a fee being paid for a player, whatever the manager thinks the squad needs. Every rumour printed about this club between now and its lifting is a rumour about a deal that cannot happen.

The dugout4 Dec 2034

No hiding place for Dayron Contuliano

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

The dugout27 Nov 2034

No hiding place for Miguel Villalba

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

Squad27 Nov 2034

Miguel Villalba has had enough of the bench

“I did not come here to warm up in front of people.” He is out of contract eventually, he is old enough to count the weeks, and San Telmo will have to give him a reason to stay or an exit.

The dugout27 Nov 2034

Isaías Jofré asks for a word with the manager

“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.

Squad20 Nov 2034

Words at San Telmo training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Franco Rodríguez 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 dugout20 Nov 2034

No hiding place for Liam Peralta

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

Market20 Nov 2034

The Juan Cruz Zurbriggen question follows San Telmo around

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

Boardroom13 Nov 2034

Wages swallow 170% of the San Telmo income

Every club pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time it has been tried.

Boardroom13 Nov 2034

The borrowing at San Telmo reaches $18.1M

Past the limit the bank set, which is the line between a club being financed and a club being in trouble. $18.1M is now the number every conversation about this club will start with.

Market13 Nov 2034

The clock does Franco Rodríguez’s negotiating for him

1 months left, and both sides know what that means: every week without a signature, the fee San Telmo could ask drops and the wages Franco Rodríguez can ask rise.

The dugout13 Nov 2034

No hiding place for José Aguirre

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

Market13 Nov 2034

The Jerónimo Porto Lapegüe story refuses to die

It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Jerónimo Porto Lapegüe signs something — a contract at San Telmo or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.

The dugout13 Nov 2034

Aldo Garces knocks on the manager’s door

“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Aldo Garces trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.

The dugout6 Nov 2034

Gonzalo Gamarra frozen out at San Telmo

This is not rotation. Gonzalo Gamarra has not been in the manager's plans for some time, and nobody at San Telmo is pretending otherwise.

Squad6 Nov 2034

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen 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 San Telmo this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad6 Nov 2034

Words at San Telmo training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Franco Rodríguez 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.

Boardroom6 Nov 2034

$792.0K of the owner's money at San Telmo

The shortfall was covered from upstairs again. Supporters are entitled to be relieved and entitled to ask what happens the month it is not, and both feelings usually arrive together.

Boardroom6 Nov 2034

No signings allowed at San Telmo

The manager may talk to whoever he likes and may pay nobody. A squad survives a window like this by borrowing, by promoting, and by hoping the injuries land somewhere else.

Squad6 Nov 2034

Home is on Guido Grillitsch's mind

“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; San Telmo are dealing with a man who wants a different country.

The dugout30 Oct 2034

Miguel Villalba 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.

Market30 Oct 2034

The Franco Aguirre question follows San Telmo around

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

Market30 Oct 2034

The clock does Jose Bacca’s negotiating for him

2 months left, and both sides know what that means: every week without a signature, the fee San Telmo could ask drops and the wages Jose Bacca can ask rise.

Market23 Oct 2034

The clock does Gonzalo Gamarra’s negotiating for him

2 months left, and both sides know what that means: every week without a signature, the fee San Telmo could ask drops and the wages Gonzalo Gamarra can ask rise.

The dugout23 Oct 2034

Gabriel Castro knocks on the manager's door

“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at San Telmo, and both men came out saying it was fine.

Squad23 Oct 2034

Lessons booked for Guido Grillitsch at San Telmo

Nobody writes a headline about a tutor. Nobody has to be told, either, what happens to a signing who spends two years being the man nobody can talk to at lunch.

Squad16 Oct 2034

Words at San Telmo training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Franco Rodríguez 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.

Squad16 Oct 2034

Gonzalo Gamarra is not the player he was

It happens to all of them and it is still the hardest paragraph a local paper has to write. 35 years old, 3 points down on where he was, and a body that has started charging interest on a career.

Boardroom16 Oct 2034

Wages swallow 200% of the San Telmo income

Every club pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time it has been tried.

The dugout16 Oct 2034

Dayron Contuliano asks for a word with the manager

“I would rather say it to his face than read about it.” The meeting was requested by the player, which tells you most of what you need to know.

The dugout16 Oct 2034

The manager makes an example of Sergio García

“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.

Market16 Oct 2034

Still no signature from Franco Rodríguez

2 months left and the two sides are nowhere near each other. Every week this drags on takes money off what San Telmo could get for him.

Squad9 Oct 2034

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen 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 San Telmo this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.

Squad9 Oct 2034

A row about effort at San Telmo

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Franco Rodríguez was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

The dugout9 Oct 2034

No hiding place for Isaías Jofré

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

Boardroom9 Oct 2034

San Telmo cannot sign anybody

The embargo bars a fee being paid for a player, whatever the manager thinks the squad needs. Every rumour printed about this club between now and its lifting is a rumour about a deal that cannot happen.

Player ratings9 Oct 2034

Lionel Bautista in the eights

A performance of 8.08 does not come along often, and when it does the rest of the team becomes scenery. He was magnificent.

Boardroom9 Oct 2034

San Telmo are $18.5M in the red

The borrowing is past what the bank agreed, which is the line where a debt stops being how football is financed and starts being a problem. Every phone-in in this town will quote the figure for the next five years.

Market2 Oct 2034

Gonzalo Gamarra 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 San Telmo, and it is not being withdrawn.

Squad2 Oct 2034

Dayron Contuliano keeps San Telmo in it on his own

Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 7 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.

Squad2 Oct 2034

Tempers go at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen 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.

Squad2 Oct 2034

Franco Rodríguez is not the player he was

It happens to all of them and it is still the hardest paragraph a local paper has to write. 35 years old, 3 points down on where he was, and a body that has started charging interest on a career.

Boardroom2 Oct 2034

$827.5K from the owner keeps San Telmo afloat

The gap in the accounts was filled from upstairs again. Supporters are entitled to be grateful and to ask what happens the month it is not, and both feelings arrive together.

The dugout2 Oct 2034

Jerónimo Porto Lapegüe 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.

Squad18 Sep 2034

A falling-out at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.

Match16 Sep 2034

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen among the goals in a wild afternoon

6 goals in one match, Juan Cruz Zurbriggen on the scoresheet, and a scoreline that will look like a misprint. Neutrals could not have asked more of San Telmo and Villa Dálmine.

Match16 Sep 2034

Villa Dálmine take the points off San Telmo

Beaten 2‑4, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.

Squad18 Sep 2034

Words at San Telmo training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Franco Rodríguez 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.

Boardroom18 Sep 2034

Wages swallow 195% of the San Telmo income

Every club pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time it has been tried.

The dugout18 Sep 2034

No hiding place for Lautaro Ibarra

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

Boardroom11 Sep 2034

The borrowing at San Telmo reaches $18.7M

Past the limit the bank set, which is the line between a club being financed and a club being in trouble. $18.7M is now the number every conversation about this club will start with.

The dugout11 Sep 2034

Daniel Sánchez 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.

Market11 Sep 2034

The Franco Aguirre story refuses to die

It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Franco Aguirre signs something — a contract at San Telmo or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.

Market11 Sep 2034

Still no signature from Gonzalo Gamarra

3 months left and the two sides are nowhere near each other. Every week this drags on takes money off what San Telmo could get for him.

The dugout11 Sep 2034

Sergio García knocks on the manager’s door

“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Sergio García trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.

Boardroom11 Sep 2034

The San Telmo academy earns its keep

60 graduates, from a department now rated 4 out of 20. Nothing about the academy appears in a result, and nothing about the club’s future exists without it.

Market4 Sep 2034

Gonzalo Gamarra 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 San Telmo can pretend not to have heard.

Player ratings4 Sep 2034

Jose Bacca beats them one at a time

Successful dribbles: 23. There was always a defender in front of him and there was never a defender in front of him for long.

Squad4 Sep 2034

Tempers go at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen 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.

Squad4 Sep 2034

Words at San Telmo training over how hard people work

Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Franco Rodríguez 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.

Boardroom4 Sep 2034

$843.3K of the owner's money at San Telmo

The shortfall was covered from upstairs again. Supporters are entitled to be relieved and entitled to ask what happens the month it is not, and both feelings usually arrive together.

Squad4 Sep 2034

Home is on Guido Grillitsch's mind

“Some mornings you wake up and you are still a long way from everything you know.” It is not the football and it never was; San Telmo are dealing with a man who wants a different country.

Squad28 Aug 2034

Words exchanged at San Telmo

Juan Cruz Zurbriggen 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.

Squad28 Aug 2034

A row about effort at San Telmo

Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Franco Rodríguez was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.

Match26 Aug 2034

Temperley take the points off San Telmo

Beaten 1‑2, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.

The dugout28 Aug 2034

Tomás Rossi 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.

The dugout28 Aug 2034

Interim Coach answers for it

“The supporters are entitled to be angry. So am I. We will put it right.” 1‑2, a manager saying the necessary things, and a dressing room that heard a different version of them.

Player ratings28 Aug 2034

The one thing Lionel Bautista could not do

Shots: 8, enough of them from close enough that a striker in form scores two. He is not a striker in form.

Boardroom21 Aug 2034

Wages swallow 146% of the San Telmo income

Every club pays most of what it earns to its players. Paying nearly all of it is a different arrangement, and it has ended the same way every time it has been tried.

Match19 Aug 2034

Dock Sud take the points off San Telmo

Beaten 0‑1, and beaten fairly. The manager kept his words short afterwards, which was probably wise.

The dugout21 Aug 2034

The manager makes an example of Isaías Jofré

“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.

The dugout21 Aug 2034

The view from the dugout

“We will look at it, we will learn from it, and we go again.” The three sentences every manager keeps for a 0‑1 defeat, delivered by Interim Coach to a room that had heard them before.

Market21 Aug 2034