Summer pass market: the curiosities of the Top 10 purchases for the League Cup
The clubs spent more money in total than in any of the previous five summers, ahead of the competition that starts today.
The wait is over. First-class soccer concluded its break for the Holidays and is preparing for the Professional League Cup , the first tournament that will begin today with four games. It is the moment of truth for the clubs, which collected preseason friendlies, added filming and bought and sold footballers to boost their squads. In that sense, a trend: with one week left until the end of the transfer market,Teams have already spent more money to reinforce themselves than in any of the previous five summers.. Below, the detail of the Top 10 signings of the Professional League : the list does not take into account the transfers that had already been arranged for months and were finalized now: the purchases of Esequiel Barco and the Uruguayan Nicolás Fonseca by River and the acquisition of Miguel Merentiel, also from Uruguay , by Boca, among others.
Juan Ramírez: from Nacional (Uruguay) to Newell’s for US$ 4 million
Up to this point, the 26-year-old Uruguayan striker is the top reinforcement of the summer. While it is true that River is holding talks for two footballers who would break the record of the Uruguayan scorer ( Rodrigo Villagra , from Talleres, and Luciano Rodríguez , the 9 of the Celeste Sub 20 led by Marcelo Bielsa), the 4 million dollars paid by the Leprosy for 80% of Ramírez ‘s pass makes him the most expensive signing. The money will go to Nacional de Montevideo , where he played last season (20 goals, one assist), owner of 30% of his pass, and Liverpool , also from Uruguay, which had 70%, sold 50% and kept 20% of the token. “The sale was almost in cash and the Rosario club will have to finish paying it off in the coming days,” they informed LA NACION from Montevideo . While waiting for his international qualification, the “Colo” embarked with his teammates towards Santiago del Estero , where the team led by the Uruguayan Mauricio Larriera will debut in the tournament against Central Córdoba (they play from 9:15 p.m. with TV broadcast Public and ESPN Premium).
Kevin Zenón: from Unión (Santa Fe) to Boca for US$ 3.5 million
Kevin Zenón ‘s move to Boca was one of the soap operas of the summer. Yes, no, the truth is that the Xeneize club accelerated to keep the skilled 22-year-old left-handed winger when it learned that it was losing Valentín Barco (he went to Brighton , in England, in exchange for US$ 10 million, his clause exit). Then, the Xeneize Football Council negotiated the arrival of his replacement with Luis Spahn , president of the Tatengue club. The operation was not easy, although it ended up being closed in exchange for US$ 3.5 million for the Santa Fe team for 80% of the token, plus 25% of Mauro Luna Diale ‘s transfer and the loan of the youthful midfielder Simón Rivero (20 years old). ) until the end of the year. Boca , in addition, is responsible for all the tax components of the pass.
Marcelino Moreno: from Coritiba (Brazil) to Lanús for US$ 3 million
Lanús had to make a splash in the transfer market after the million-dollar sales of Pedro De la Vega (to Seattle Sounders, of the MLS) and Matías Esquivel (to Mamelodi Sundowns, of South Africa). The leaders and the coach, Ricardo Zielinski , then looked at an old acquaintance of the club: Marcelino Moreno . The Mendoza soccer player, trained in the maroon youth teams, had been sold to Atlanta United , of the MLS, in 2020 and in exchange for US$ 7 million. Last season he played for Coritiba , in Brazil, a team with which he was relegated to the second division. The Brazilians sold the Argentine team 50% of Moreno ‘s pass that they had bought from Atlanta . In total, the operation cost close to US$ 3 million and occupies the third step of the purchasing podium in this summer market.
Santiago Solari: from Defense and Justice to Racing for US$ 3 million
Santiago Solari ‘s last season with the Defensa y Justicia shirt caused other clubs to become interested in his dribbles and his devilish one-on-one play. The one that bet the biggest on the 25-year-old footballer was Racing , which paid Halcón US$3 million for 80% of the pass. Solari signed with the Academy until the end of 2027. His numbers with Defensa include seven goals and three assists in 54 games. He is the brother of Pablo , a River player who trained at Talleres de Córdoba and is in Venezuela with the Under 23 team led by Javier Mascherano . “It is a dream to reach a great of this caliber. “I am very happy, it is a nice way to start 2024,” said Solari once all the procedures were completed to be able to join the team now led by Gustavo Costas .
Alex Vigo: from River to Talleres de Córdoba for US$ 2.5 million
The 24-year-old right back maintains his good reputation in Argentine football. Although his last two experiences were not entirely fruitful ( Independiente and Estrella Roja , from Serbia ), Talleres de Córdoba looked at the footballer trained in Colón de Santa Fe to reinforce the squad now led by Walter Ribonetto (he replaced the position to Javier Gandolfi). The T paid close to $2.5 million for 90% of his stake. The remaining 10% is in the hands of River . “ Talleres is a very big club. He has been doing things very well for a long time and since I debuted he has been looking for me. For other reasons my arrival could not have happened before, but I am very happy now,” said Vigo when being presented as the new reinforcement of the Córdoba team.
Facundo Cambeses: from Banfield to Racing for US$ 2 million
The former goalkeeper of the Argentine youth teams left Taladro , where he trained, to end up in Avellaneda . The operation was closed at two million dollars net for Banfield and the former captain of the Taladro will compete with Gabriel Arias for the Academy goal. He had been one of the specific requests of the new racinguista coach , Gustavo Costas , and had stood out in the goal of the team led by Julio César Falcioni . Born in Longchamps 26 years ago, the goalkeeper always played for Banfield except for a brief spell with Huracán in the 20-21 season: he saved in 15 games and conceded 21 goals.With the national team shirt he was champion of the Lima 2019 Pan American Games and the Colombian Pre-Olympic Games in 2020.
Gabriel Ávalos, from Argentinos to Independiente for US$ 2 million
The Paraguayan striker goes from one place to another: the Independiente shirt will be number fourteen in his 18-year career . He started in Libertad , his country, and became number 9 of the Guaraní team. Now, specially requested by Carlos Tevez , the Reds coach, his job will be to recreate in Avellaneda the goals he scored in Argentinos Juniors (47 in 122 games, in addition to 14 assists). The forward signed a contract until December 2026 and arrives to replace the emigrated Martín Cauteruccio . He will be the team’s offensive reference. “I am very happy to be here, I hope I can give it back in the best way. There really is a great group and as soon as I arrived they received me quite well,” he said after his first practice. And he left a message to the fans of the King of Cups:“Support the group, there is a very nice group and we are going to work to achieve things.”
Jaminton Campaz, from Gremio to Rosario Central for US$ 2 million
The 23-year-old Colombian winger stood out last season for his electricity. As the games went by he became the fundamental card for Rosario Central ‘s attack . The team led by Miguel Ángel Russo ended up winning the League Cup with the coffee-growing soccer player as a figure. At the end of the year, the leadership headed by Gonzalo Belloso decided to make use of the option for 50% of the pass and paid US$ 2 million to Gremio de Porto Alegre (Brazil). However, the Colombian’s final arrival was delayed due to a debt that the Brazilians owed him. After missing the entire preseason,Campaz will do a special job. He will have a contract until December 2026.
Juan Portilla, from América de Cali to Talleres for US$ 2 million
At 25 years old and after a great season with América de Cali , the Colombian midfielder became the object of desire of several clubs. Talleres de Córdoba won the bid and paid the US$2 million of his termination clause to hire him. It was a case similar to that of Barco en Boca : América wanted his starting value to be higher, but the footballer did not renew and left for the figure stipulated in the agreement. He will play the Professional League under the command of Ribonetto after signing until the end of 2027 with the T. The coffee-growing footballer declared that he has Fabián Vargas (former Boca) as a reference in his position and that he admires other midfielders such as the Chilean Arturo Vidal and the Uruguayan Federico Valverde . “I was in the United States and in Chile. Today I have another maturity, I know my responsibilities and I know that it is a very good moment in my career. I established myself as a great player in Colombia and that is why I took on the challenge of coming here,” he said upon arriving in Córdoba.
Francisco González Metilli, from Argentinos Juniors to Belgrano
The offensive midfielder who emerged in Santamarina de Tandil arrives in Córdoba to be the football powerhouse of the Pirate, who paid US$ 1.9 million for 80% of his transfer (the remaining 20% remains in the hands of the Tandilenses). He signed until the end of 2026. González Metilli can also play as a winger, although his main virtue is his outlook and vision: in the last campaign with Argentinos Juniors he played 49 games, scored six goals and gave seven assists .