University: what excites and what the champion lacks after his debut against Vallejo in the year of his Centennial

Therefore, the first conclusion about Fabián Bustos’ U is that: time has not passed. It is a U from the past that needs injection and brief adjustments, if it wants to make a leap in quality.

The team

It is no surprise: the initial plan of the Ferrari administration was to renew the contracts of 90% of the squad and make brief adjustments. Not now, of course: this group was formed in December 2022, after the end of a generation with names like Quina, Alonso or Quinteros, precisely looking at the club’s Centennial. A refoundation. And given the results of December, champions in Matute, Ferrari and Manuel Barreto ratified the bet. For this reason, the first eleven of the year has all the spirit of 2023. Except for Britos, the Uruguayan champion goalkeeper with Liverpool, the other ten played in the final in Matute. At times, it seemed like any other game from the year that was gone.

Is it an advantage over the other teams in League 1? Let’s say that the U starts with a known operation, the same 3-5-2 and players who do not need adaptation time. This is the consolidation of an idea. It’s enough? Let’s say that to be the first game it is enough to know that there is a base and that the leap in quality has to do with a plan B on the extremes – we already know that Polo is the scalpel or that Cabanillas is the best centerer – and the real bet after Quispe’s departure to Mexico. That surprise, that vertigo, is no longer there.

The intensity

Fossati inherited the system, the players and the backpack without stones, so Bustos’ management will have to be measured by decisions that enhance this champion U. The scorer, for example. Or the intensity, seen last night with César Vallejo, which forced every player – from Di Benedetto to Valera – to rush out to reduce space and anticipate the rival. The Bustos label seems to be out there. The night of the Mansiche left those first signs. The other thing will be the surgical decision on the two reinforcements that the squad is missing. And the way in which the U will face the height (8 teams) and the visit in any other province.

Quispe Calca

It’s the big question. Can Calca play as Quispe? It can, without a doubt. He knows the field, his teammates, he has a pass and a goal. But he does not bear Piero’s knife when he cuts down the middle, nor the short dribble and even less the recovery of balls that he did have on Pumas’ 27th today, that expensive value that distinguished him. The U has lost that and the great lesson of the night is the need for the administration and sports management to sign a footballer who can be a link, mixed or 10. Options? From abroad, the Argentines Maroni (former Boca) and Ortiz (former SC), both with initial contacts already made. And from outside, too, but a local player, it is a surprise: Christofer Gonzáles, who is interested in the proposal and would even have received a call from two former U who know him, Oreja Flores and Andy Polo.

The new ones

Strange to see Carvallo in the rival goal and a giant with a serious face in the cream. The great novelty of the first half was the ownership of the Uruguayan Sebastián Britos, who had almost no activity – only a header from Noronha at 31′ that he resolved coldly – and who left as his letter of introduction his permanent long pass and a man’s concentration waxy. It is clear that he is a goalkeeper who is a goalkeeper, well below his sticks and due to his height he is preceded by good aerial play. The Libertadores is the great challenge. “I have adapted very well now. It is a healthy group. The mix of young and experienced is noticeable as soon as you get to the locker room,” he told Liga 1 Max last night. Signs that excite about the solidity of a group that is going for the two-time championship in the most glorious year in its history.

Dorregaray? Olive groves? Regarding the first there is, above all, hope. He entered 20 minutes into the second half and the most noticeable thing he leaves behind is his bearing: he is a tower that is going to win a lot up front but needs enablers. That header at the end, after Bolívar’s cross, is a button. Regarding Christofer, former Cristal, it will be Bustos’ mission to find him a place, whether in the team or as a replacement, a role on the field. Due to size he may be 9, but his recent past in Cienciano forces us to rethink that he could be extreme. The U would thus have three buildings: Dorregaray, Valera and him.

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