University player with ‘Cancha’ and Concha: two ‘bombshell’ signings in one week and what is known about the latest foreign reinforcement

All the secrets that Edison Flores’ WhatsApp keeps will be archived under 100 keys in the ‘U’. ‘Ears’, before the start of the League 1, played a key role off the court. He was the friend who told them about the team, the family and the love for academic. It was necessary to touch that merengue fiber that turns 100 years old in 2024. If there is drive, there is passion. And he published a story on Instagram eating canchita (pop corn) waiting for what came next: the decisive steps for Jairo Concha and Christofer Gonzáles to be the new players of the ‘U’.

The plane back from Trujillo -post Noche Poeta- brought Fabián Bustos’ first conclusions: the team needed to close important signings in the next few hours. On Tuesday, in a meeting between the coach, the administration and the sports management, the names that had already been in contact with the Universitario de Deportes club after winning title 27 last November in Matute were defined.

What was missing with Jairo Concha? A financial offer greater than the one he presented weeks ago. The midfielder’s agency, then, gladly received the new monetary conditions on Wednesday morning and after some details (an exit clause that favors both parties in case an offer arrives from abroad) the agreement was closed. A video was recorded clearly at the Monumental Stadium for his presentation and early Thursday he began training in Campomar. “It’s a dream come true,” Concha published on her social networks, where the happiest with the news was Willy, his father.

What was the second issue to be resolved in the University internship? The signing of Christofer Gonzáles. The office of sports director Manuel Barreto, advised by Antonio García Pye (his new position within the club will be announced in a few days), reactivated contact with Christofer’s entourage. It was known that the midfielder wanted to leave the Saudi League where he played for Al Adalah (28 games, 4 goals), and his agency Pentafut was able to reach an agreement to terminate the contract. From Peru, the news was well received by the ‘U’, which opened the doors to the 2024 squad. In the absence of a signature, Gonzáles returns to the institution that saw him born in football after 9 years.

Summer market in Ate

In both cases, Universitario took advantage of the opportunity and had the patience to wait for the right moment. “We are going at a different pace, more thoughtful and strategic, we are not desperate,” they respond to El Comercio from the ‘U’. These latest statements echo what Antonio García Pye stated months ago when he asked to banish the idea of ​​“champions no matter what.” “It makes us irresponsible, it is not the best way,” he stated. Today those words have more meaning. In the merengue club they cannot waste money. For this reason, the negotiations with Concha and Gonzáles have gone through all possible filters and the best for the institution has been thought of.

Both footballers will extend their relationship with Universitario until 2026. Both were convinced by the club’s centenary project. And both, clearly, prioritized their fans and love for the cream jersey to play in 2024 at the Monumental.

Meanwhile, in the offices of the Monumental Stadium, not all hiring has been closed. Names like Gonzalo Ríos (Audaz Italiano) or Andrés Ibargüen (Independiente de Medellí) come up. However, the latest signing, which will be a foreigner, has not yet been decided. Until a few hours ago, in the ‘U’ they were thinking about an attacker who can play in more than one position in the attack. On the other hand, if the sale of Alex Valera (offer from Japan) is completed, the club would be forced to look for another center forward to compete for the position with Diego Dorregaray.

The return of another son

When they trained in Vidú, ‘Canchita’ was not ‘Canchita’. He was also called Ears and played in the club’s 1992 category. However, there was a little boy from Collique with the last name Flores who gained greater notoriety among the minor divisions (he played in the ’93 being from ’94) and, then, the name changed and because of his fluffy hair he earned the nickname Canchita. Christofer Gonzáles was not in that starting team champion of the 2011 Copa Libertadores Sub 20, although he could have fought for a place. In the celebration videos he is one of the first to hug his colleagues Ampuero, Polo, Cáceda, among others. The following year he could not do much for the club to defend the international title at home.

What he did do was earn a place in the first team when his friend ‘Orejas’ left for Villarreal in Spain and Andy Polo, the club’s other budding gem, was poorly advised and set conditions to play in 2013 for the club. Canchita listened to coach Ángel Comizzo. He became the main piece in the axis of the steering wheel. He worked a double shift at Campomar alongside Gómez, Guarderas, Chávez, the other Under 20s. If he had to concentrate for two whole weeks at the coach’s whim, he did it without complaining. Thus he managed to be the creative of the 2013 champion team at the age of 21 in the finals against Real Garcilaso.

He stayed a couple more years, but the pressure of playing abroad and ensuring the future of his family forced him to make hasty decisions. It is clear, he sought not to let the best years of his football ability escape him. He went to Chile to play for Colo Colo and broke it: three titles between 2015 and 2017 with loans to Vallejo and Sport Rosario. Then, when he had already earned a place among Ricardo Gareca’s squad, he crossed the path to Rímac. At Sporting Cristal they gave him what at that time Universitario couldn’t or didn’t have: stability and project. The merengue club was still managed by an administration close to the construction company Gremco. And the same footballer says that he once asked to train as a guest at Campomar and they did not give him permission.

In La Florida he became champion right against Universitario in 2020. Then, he went to the Al Adalah club that plays this year in the second division of the Arabian League. The bad results (they have not won since November of last year) and the fact that the team occupies fifth place in the table with the sporting reasons why Gonzáles was looking for a team with greater competitiveness.

“The priority goes to Sporting Cristal. I have had wonderful moments with the club. At some point I hope there will be the opportunity to return. I am predisposed, but it must be negotiated,” he said some time ago when among rumors it was said that the adaptation process of the footballer and his family in Saudi Arabia was not going through a good moment.

2024 has started with a missionary candle lit for Christofer to return to the ‘U’. The decisions he made in Arabia (terminating his contract) only made it possible for his return to materialize. Now, he will have to take responsibility for the statements where he affirmed his affinity for the celestials. There is no better answer in football than talking on the field, and with goals.