Snak

Colón le ganó un amistoso a Huracán

BUENOS AIRES -- Colón de Santa Fe le ganó en la mañana del viernes a Huracán 2-0 un partido amistoso jugado en su predio deportivo de cara a la reanudación de la actividad oficial en el fútbol argentino.

El delantero Rubén Tito Ramírez y el mediocampista Gabriel Graciani, uno en cada tiempo, marcaron los tantos del conjunto dirigido por Rubén Forestello.

Colón presentó la siguiente formación inicial: Germán Montoya; Maximiliano Caire, Ronald Raldes, Oscar Carniello y Bruno Urribarri; Gabriel Graciani, Iván Moreno y Fabianesi, Sebastián Prediger y Jacobo Mansilla; Martín Luque y Rubén Ramírez.

En tanto, Huracán alineó Diego Pozo; Sergio Velázquez, Federico Mancinelli, Alexis Ferrero y Carlos Arano; Germán Mandarino, Alejandro Capurro, Lucas Villarruel y Gonzalo Martínez; Cristian Espinoza y Juan Arraya.

Colón debutará en el torneo Inicial de primera división ante Racing Club, el sábado 3 de agosto en Santa Fe; mientras que Huracán lo hará en la B Nacional, el mismo fin de semana, con su visita a Crucero del Norte de Misiones.

Colo Colo vende a Carlos Muñoz

SANTIAGO DE CHILE -- El Colo Colo chileno ha aceptado una oferta del Baniyas SC, de los Emiratos Árabes Unidos, de casi cinco millones de dólares por su goleador Carlos Muñoz, informaron el viernes fuentes del club.

El delantero, de 24 años y surgido en el Santiago Wanderers de Valparaíso, firmará un contrato de tres años con el club árabe, a cambio de un sueldo de tres millones de dólares anuales, precisaron las fuentes.

El Colo Colo aceptó la oferta después que el Baniyas SC mejoró otra presentada anteriormente, de 4,3 millones de dólares por la ficha de Muñoz y la operación debe quedar cerrada este mismo viernes, dijeron las fuentes.

De hecho, Muñoz, que llegó al Colo Colo en 2011 y desde entonces ha anotado 37 goles con la camiseta alba, no jugaría este fin de semana contra el Unión San Felipe, en la primera fase de la Copa Chile 2013-2014, para no arriesgarse a una eventual lesión.

El Santiago Wanderers, cuando traspasó a Muñoz al Colo Colo, conservó el 50 % de su ficha, por lo que recibirá casi 2,5 millones de dólares de parte del club árabe.

El Colo Colo, según trascendió, baraja tres nombres para reemplazar a Muñoz: Patricio Rubio y Gustavo Canales, ambos actuales jugadores de la Unión Española, y Diego Rubio, jugador del Sporting Lisboa portugués.

Llegaron Malrechauffe y Toledo

SANTIAGO DE CHILE -- Colo Colo presentó a sus dos últimos refuerzos, el defensa uruguayo Damián Malrechauffe y el delantero argentino Javier Toledo, con lo que dio por cerrada la plantilla para este curso.

"Ambos jugadores llenan las necesidades técnicas que tiene nuestro entrenador (el paraguayo Gustavo Benítez). Estamos conformes con el plantel que estructuramos. Es de 28 jugadores, incluidos siete juveniles", dijo el presidente del club, Arturo Salah.

Damián Malrechauffe, que llega procedente del Cúcuta Deportivo colombiano, se refirió en su presentación a los malos resultados cosechados por el conjunto albo, que desde 2009 no consigue ningún título.

"Las rachas negativas se cortan. El equipo viene mejorando y ahora nosotros queremos aportar para lograr triunfos", indicó el uruguayo, de 28 años.

"Debuté como lateral, pero he venido jugando de central. Me puedo adecuar a la línea de fondo en cualquiera de las posiciones", agregó Malrechauffe.

En tanto, el argentino Javier Toledo indicó que Colo Colo es "un club grande, con mucha historia", al que llegan con muchas ganas de trabajar y con el objetivo de demostrar "partido tras partido" que vienen a sumar.

"Tuve un buen cierre de campaña y ahora tengo que trabajar para demostrarle al técnico que puedo ser un aporte. He jugado en equipos de ascenso y en equipos de Primera como en Arabia Saudí, Brasil y Ecuador. Esta es una gran posibilidad para mí", declaró el exjugador del Rosario Central argentino.

Toledo ha jugado además en el Chacarita Juniors, Sarmiento y el Deportivo Cuenca de Ecuador, entre otros.

Apertura 2013: Cruz Azul wonder what could have been

MEXICO CITY -- Cruz Azul were five minutes away from becoming league champions and putting an end to a 15-and-a-half-year losing streak. They wasted a historic opportunity, largely because of what they stopped doing, turning their backs on the style that took them to the final and not capitalizing on opportunities to seize the title. America was a deserving champion, because they gave everything they had to the very end.

After that performance, there were enough reasons for Cruz Azul to show Guillermo Vazquez the door. However, they decided to give him a vote of confidence. His first assignment: leading the mental recovery of a team that has been seriously traumatized by the manner in which America took the title from them.

However, someone who won´t return is Alberto Quintano. His term as sporting director was notable for his many foreign signings mistakes. From 2009 to now, he has signed 24 players, a list which includes real disasters such as: Maranhao, Ramon Nunez, Emilio Hernandez, Edcarlos, Maxi Biancucchi, Marcelo Palau, Waldo Ponce, Nicolas Bertolo and Hugo Droguett, to mention but a few.

Quintano will not be missed, for obvious reasons. He has been replaced by Agustin Manzo.

In the draft, they managed their most notable signing with Joao Rojas. The skillful Ecuadorian arrives from Monarcas with a lot of potential. He is will be an immediate starter alongside Christian Gimenez, Pablo Barrera and Mariano Pavone.

They also recruited some promising players, such as Jeronimo Amione and Sergio Nápoles, both from Atlante. They passed over others who were not a priority, such as Yosgart Gutierrez, Alejandro Vela, Javier “Chuleta” Orozco and Nestor Araujo.

Meanwhile, Teofilo Gutierrez has been at the center of a very unpleasant soap opera. He has loudly announced to anyone who will listen that he wants to go to River Plate, even though his contract has another two and a half years to run. Gutierrez´s talent is beyond doubt, but his professionalism is very much in doubt. Cruz Azul should get used to the idea of not counting on him. They needs players who are 100 percent committed.

However, the squad continues to be solid with proven players such as Jose de Jesus Corona -- the undisputed, top goalkeeper in Mexico -- Amaranto Perea, Gerardo Flores and Gerardo Torrado.

The ghosts of the past seemed to have been exorcised when Cruz Azul defeated Atlante in the Cup tournament. Yet, the cure was not complete, as the virus returned to infect them in the league final.

Now, nothing else but the championship will cure them.

Apertura 2013: Is a double in store for America?

MEXICO CITY -- If there´s anything that I will grant Miguel Herrera, it´s that since his arrival he has taken on the challenge of managing a top team. In his presentation he said, "championships are all that matter now." He leaves out any absurd wordplay such as "we are committed, not obliged." Where have I heard this?

Now that he has obtained his first title with America, he has his mind set on the double championship. This is the way it should be; this is what sitting in that bench means, and the message must be announced as clearly and decisively as that by the leader of the team.

The task is not a simple one. In 17 years of short tournaments there has been only one recorded back-to-back champion; the Pumas of 2004. And it seems even less simple if we consider that two of its best players have left: Christian Benitez, its top scorer, to Qatar, and Diego Reyes, its best defender, to Porto of Portugal.

To calculate what Benitez has meant for America, he is one of the five consecutive goal-scoring triple champions in the history of Mexican football. The others were: Adalberto "Dumbo" Lopez, Enrique Borja, Evanivaldo "Cabinho" Castro and Carlos Hermosillo. Such an outstanding team! Herrera needs to replace a quota of 10 to 12 goals in his absence. To do so he has three footballers to alternate between: Narciso Mina, Raul Jimenez and Luis Gabriel Rey.

Mina just appeared in the Liga; it is high time for him to show why he scored lots of goals in Ecuador. Jimenez clings onto a starting position which he has earned with effort. Rey guarantees at least seven goals in each short tournament -- not an irrelevant figure at all. Herrera knows Luis Gabriel well; nine years ago they worked together in Atlante and the Colombian player was the league’s top scorer.

I stand firm: Reyes was America’s best defender in the 2013 Clausura, even better than Aquivaldo Mosquera and Francisco "Maza" Rodriguez. Erik Pimentel and Juan Carlos Valenzuela will fight for his position; the latter is less experienced, but has more potential.

The midfield generation depended on Rubens Sambueza. It declined when the Argentinian player was not there, to a large extent because neither Christian "Hobbit" Bermudez nor Oswaldo Martinez could fill the opening. Seeking more depth in the right flank, the Colombian Andres "Riflecito" Andrade, age 24, arrives from Deportes Tolima. According to Ricardo Pelaez, he can also play in the left flank, "and even as playmaker."

Moises Munoz, Jesus Molina, Miguel Layún, Adrian Aldrete and Juan Carlos Medina are silent yet essential pieces of the machinery. They will come back.

The way in which America took the 2013 Clausura championship was memorable; history in the making. It was a true example of how a final should be played: full of energy, commitment, conviction and not even subsiding at the last minute. Now it is necessary to respond with the greatness of the club, which requires always being in the privileged positions to go for the double championship.

Contingent of South Americans reinforces Liga MX

Footballers of Argentina, Paraguay and Colombia will breathe new life into Mexican soccer, reinforcing the eleven local teams of the 2013 Apertura tournament in which a total of 85 foreigners will play.

The newly-arrived Argentinian players are Mauro Boselli, to Leon; Guido Pizarro, to Tigres; Lucas Viatri, to Chiapas; Ariel Nahuelpan, to Pumas UNAM; Dario Benedetto, to Tijuana; Leandro Gracian, to Queretaro and Martin Galmarini, Walter Ervitti, Mauricio Romero and Patricio Rodriguez, to Atlante.

The Paraguayans are Richard Ortiz and Pablo Velazquez, to Toluca, and David Mendieta, to Jaguares, while the Colombians who are being incorporated to the Liga MX are Andres Andrade, to America, and Dorlan Pabon, to Monterrey, as well as the Ecuadorian Juan Jose Govea, to Morelia.

Mexican football will have 85 non-nationals in its new tournament: a group formed by 25 Argentinians, 20 Colombians, eight Paraguayans, eight Ecuadorians, seven Americans, five Brazilians, five Chileans, two Uruguayans, two Spaniards, two Panamanian players, and a Bolivian.

Atlante will have five Argentinian players: Joaquin Larrivey, Martin Galmarini, Walter Ervitti, Mauricio Romero, and Patricio Rodríguez. Ervitti and Romero already played in Mexico with Monterrey and Morelia, respectively, and Larrivey has already won one tournament.

Guido Pizarro, who also stands out, will join his fellow countrymen Lucas Lobos and Damian Alvarez in Tigres; these last two already play as naturalized players.
While Ariel Nahuelpan will arrive to Pumas UNAM where his fellow countrymen Martin Romagnoli and Martin Bravo already are, Dario Benedetto will play for ´Xolos´ of Tijuana side by side with Javier Gandolfi and Cristian Pellerano.

Other Argentinian players who continue to play are Mariano Pavone, of Cruz Azul; Cesar Delgado, of Monterrey; Matias Alustiza, of Puebla, and Emanuel Villa, of Tigres.

The Colombian representation of Aquivaldo Mosquera, of America; Franco Arizala, of León; Aldo Leao Ramírez, of Morelia; Duvier Riascos, of Pachuca; Carlos Darwin Quintero, of Santos, and Teofilo Gutiérrez, of Cruz Azul, will grow with Andrade, of America, and Pabon, of Monterrey.

Sizing up the Liga MX Apertura contenders

The Liga MX Apertura of 2013 will soon kick off and ring in a number of changes. Beyond the usual shift of players from one team to another, there have been ownership changes, rule changes and wholesale moves of team franchises. The number of changes makes for an unpredictable season, yet I still foresee some of the usual suspects as candidates to grab the trophy at the very end of the season.

At this point, as defending champions, it is Club America´s trophy to lose. Now holding a record-tying eleven titles, Las Aguilas are flying high. Though they lost star striker Christian Benitez, they have kept most of their squad intact. Raul Jimenez will now be expected to shoulder more of the scoring load. With his irrepressibly emotive style of sideline leadership, coach Miguel Herrera is going to be looking to take the club back to the championship final. Though it will be impossible to top the miracle game that won them the Clausura title, the squad should contend for the trophy.

Another contender for the title is Tigres, a club that may likely begin the season with a considerable sense of vengeance. Though they led Liga MX for much of the season, even flirting with an unprecedented unbeaten run, Tigres bowed out of the playoffs early. The lesson imparted by elimination games is that focus must be maintained at all times and at all costs. Newly naturalized Mexican citizen and Tigres captain Lucas Lobos will make sure that recent arrivals such as Guido Hernan Pizarro learn that well.

Redemption may also be on the agenda for Cruz Azul, who might still be reeling from their narrow loss in the Clausura final, where they were mere moments away from victory. Another newly naturalized Mexican citizen, Christian Gimenez, directs the squad from midfield. Though the drama involving Teofilo Gutierrez has overshadowed the club´s preparation to the season, the squad is probably better off to part ways with the problematic player who has expressed a desire to join Argentine side River Plate. With their Copa MX trophy in hand, Los Cementeros plan to defend that title and also seal the deal on the league championship. It could happen.

An outside contender for the league title is Club Tijuana. Xolos coach Jorge Francisco has assembled a team true to its border heritage. Three players on the squad are Mexican-Americans: Joe Benny Corona, Herculez Gomez and Edgar Castillo. Earlier in the year, the Xolos squad was distracted from their Liga MX campaign by matches in other competitions, namely the Copa Libertadores. They didn´t even make the Liga MX playoffs. This Apertura season look for a recharged and refocused Club Tijuana to do well.

The mid-tier of Liga MX is full of teams who will give the top squads trouble, win games, probably make the playoffs, but somehow, fall short of the final hurdle because of aging personnel, injuries, or divisive team management. Granted, Liga MX isn´t as stratified as say, England´s Premier League, where frankly, there´s just a reshuffling of the wealthiest teams every year, leaving other squads with less riches and virtually no hope of a title run. In Liga MX, it´s more about form, organization, and a lineup that works.

Over the years, Club Monarcas Morelia has improved in many ways. Their fans can count on consistently good results from the squad, but getting over the hump to really contend for a title has proved elusive since 2000.

Atlas, for one, is a club which overachieved last season and may not go as far this year when other clubs remember not to overlook Leandro Cufre and his cohorts. A new coach, Omar Asad, will also need a period of adjustment.

Meanwhile, Monterrey must shake off the disappointment of the rule change that doesn´t allow them to defend their CONCACAF Champions Cup trophy. Humberto Suazo won´t have Aldo de Nigris by his side in the attack, but Dorlan Pabon can and will do some serious damage.

Like their talented midfielder Luis Montes, Leon is a squad that can surprise with unexpected danger and skill, but consistent results elude them.

Another cat club, UNAM Pumas, also plans to stalk the top squads. Coach Antonio Torres has kept most of the roster intact and that cohesion should yield good results.

The whys and ways of coach Pedro Caixinha are a conundrum at times to fans of Santos Laguna, but if Oribe Peralta is able to stay healthy, the squad will be in the playoffs again.

Toluca still has the seemingly ageless and creative Antonio ´Zinha´ Naelson making magic in the midfield, but new coach Jose Saturnino will probably need time to figure out the quirks of Liga MX.

The lowest tier of teams in Liga MX contains not only those clubs whose main hope is to avoid the relegation drop, but also clubs who will probably have a stinker of a season for a multitude of reasons.

Sadly, Club Deportivo Guadalajara, the legendary Chivas squad, belongs here not only because of their poor finish to the previous season, but also because their big move for striker Aldo de Nigris backfired due to his recent leg injury. The bottom line is also that the ownership of Jorge Vergara has turned toxic, with his meddling tendencies creating major problems.

Pachuca joins Chivas as a formerly great club that has fallen on tough times, though they seem to be taking concrete steps to climb out of their pit of despair.

Queretaro Futbol Club, though, has to contend with a tainted legacy of being something of a stolen team, given that they are what remains of Jaguares de Chiapas. Though the squad finished out strong last season, their tangled history could compromise their fan base and support.

The newly-christened Chiapas club (formerly San Luis) will also attempt to win over fans with a completely different roster. This instant rebranding by owners will probably have consequences, but perhaps Chiapas will overcome the issues in a pleasant surprise.

Another "made over" club is Veracruz -- formerly Club La Piedad -- which will likely also struggle to establish itself in Liga MX this season.

Atlante, meanwhile, shipped out a number of players in their quest to improve and avoid the threat of relegation. It´s going to take some time for the squad and their new coach to gel.

Puebla, following the wise old man Manuel Lapuente, also plans to inch their way along to safety slowly but surely.

Yet nothing is sure in Liga MX. Unexpected elements are part of the allure. Half the fun is guessing what will happen next, then watching the games to find out.

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Apertura 2013: Pachuca need to try something new

Does anyone understand what Pachuca is trying to do? In the past decade they set a successful standard by combining foreign signings with promoting the production of its own academy, with the players that work very well. In the past two years, they have completely changed their methods, and the results have not been good.

The Tuzos that was successful got the best years out of the Caleros, Chaco, Damian and Caballero himself, and with solid academy players such as Pinto, Correa, Rodriguez and Leobardo Lopez. Now they have added at least eight new players in each of the last four season breaks, many of them to be discarded six months later. From Clausura 2011 to date, they have only made the playoffs twice in five tournaments, being eliminated both times in the quarterfinals.

For Apertura 2013, Gabriel Caballero remains in charge even though he lost his final five games and his record was even worse than Hugo Sanchez´s. Caballero made his name at Pachuca; no doubt this has helped him to stay on, but he needs to deliver immediate results.

Pachuca added nine new players for this tournament. The most important is the Colombian Duvier Riascos, a key player in Tijuana´s triumph at Apertura 2012. His 20 league goals while at Xolos in two tournaments convinced the Tuzos to pay more than 2 million dollars plus Jaime Ayoví for his transfer.

Oscar ´El Conejo´ (The Rabbit) Perez, a complete professional in every sense of the word, is also a new Pachuca player. Now, at 40 years of age, the emblematic goalkeeper will try to be the guide that Rodolfo Cota needs for the future. For starters, I don’t see El Conejo on the bench.

The long list of new additions also includes: Luis Angel Morales (who arrived in an exchange for Nestor Vidrio from Chivas), Ivan Estrada (right back, ex-Santos player) Walter Ayoví (solid holding midfielder or left back, arriving from Monterrey), Jorge Gastelum (defensive central midfielder) and Efrain Cortes (veteran Colombian central defender and ex-player of Queretaro and Nacional de Montevideo).

Paulo Da Silva, who had assumed the role of leader from central defense, has left; also Hector Miguel Herrera, who was successfully sold to Porto of Portugal; Angel Reyna, whose off-field problems continue to marginalize him time and time again; and also the foreigners Aviles Hurtado and Christian Marrugo, who did not contribute much and for whom there was little patience.

Daniel Luduena remains, but he has underperformed. He never came close to his best years at Santos. ´El Hachita´ (the Little Ax) was a starter in 16 games, did not score and had only one assist.

Once again, many arrive and many leave at the same time that some talented prospects await a bit of continuity: Marco Bueno, Rodolfo Pizarro and Julio Gomez. The squad is good, without a doubt. What is contradictory is the way that Pachuca has left behind the formula that worked for it for years.

Apertura 2013: ´Xolos´ are on a roll on the border

Antonio Mohamed wrote a chapter filled with successes in the history of Tijuana. Not only did he save them from relegation, he also led them to their first season league championship and nearly made the semifinals of the Copa Libertadores. It was a 20-month span that will not be forgotten on the border.

The penalty kick that was missed by Duvier Riascos in the 91st minute in the return game against Atletico Mineiro in Brazil is still remembered. The Colombian surely did not know it, but that would be his last moment with the Xolos, because five days later he would be sold for millions to the Tuzos of Pachuca.

The gaps they leave, Riascos as well as Mohamed, are large. The Argentine Jorge Francisco Almiron takes over the coaching duties without experience in the First Division. He coached Dorados, Veracruz and Correcaminos in the Ascenso Division. Almiron played out his soccer career in Mexico. He knows the league and is recommended by Mohamed.

Riasco’s position will be occupied by Herculez Gomez, who scores goals for nearly every team he joins. At Santos he scored 13 goals in 45 games, without counting the nine he scored in CONCACAF. He is reliable and will be accompanied by Fidel Martínez, Fernando Arce, Christian Pellerano and Joe Corona -- in other words, a well-known midfield.

Jaime Ayovi was part of the Riascos trade but was sent on loan to the Deportiva Universitaria Liga de Quito. Arriving is the Argentine forward Dario Benedetto, 23, from Arsenal de Sarandí, where he scored five goals in nine games as a starter. Emanuel Cerda, forward and ex-Tigres player, will be an additional option.

The defense remains solid with the presence of captain Javier Gandolfi and Pablo Cesar Aguilar. Edgar Castillo has his place reserved at left back, while veteran Cirilo Saucedo remains as goalkeeper. The problem with Saucedo, now that he has been called up to the national team, is that injuries have dogged him.

The major challenge is to replace Mohamed -- who, by the way, did not handle his exit altogether well when he said that if Xolos reached the semifinals of the Libertadores tournament, he would no longer be in charge. In any case, his final numbers are excellent, with 33 wins and 16 defeats, including the Libertadores.

Soccer came to stay in Tijuana. Clausura 2013 was not a good tournament for the Xolos in the national league, but they took their first steps internationally. Now they will have another chance, but in the CONCACAF Champions League.