Unión head to La Plata with a doubt at the back | OneFootball

El Tate visits an Estudiantes side in need at the UNO Stadium. Without Lautaro Vargas due to yellow-card accumulation, the Uruguayan Álvarez would win out over Nico Paz. Falcón Pérez will be the referee after that controversial Merentiel goal.

With the top spot in Zone A firmly in its sights, Madelón’s team is already hard at work thinking about Saturday’s clash against El Pincha. The big question mark this week is at right-back: Lautaro Vargas picked up his fifth yellow and will have to watch from the sidelines, leaving a gap that hasn’t been so easy to fill.

Even though there’s still time left, all signs point to Emiliano Álvarez. The Uruguayan seems to be edging out Nico Paz for the right-back spot. Álvarez is coming off a bittersweet run: he started in the win over Agropecuario but went off injured before the end of the first half, and he also got some minutes off the bench in the loss to Defensa in Varela.

Emiliano Alvarez

Although it’s still too early to lock in the team sheet, the lineup shaping up to take the field in La Plata would be Mansilla in goal; a back four of Álvarez or Paz, Maizon, Ludueña and Del Blanco; in midfield, Palacios, Mauro Pittón, Profini and Cuello; with the attacking duo of Tarragona and Estigarribia up front.

The match is this Saturday at 5:15 p.m. at UNO Stadium. El Tate comes in on a high after beating Riestra at the 15 de Abril and wants to take advantage of an Estudiantes team that has been stumbling after losing to San Lorenzo. “Cacique” Medina is on thin ice, and Unión knows it has to make the most of these troubled waters to stay on top of its group.

One thing to note: the referee will be Yael Falcón Pérez. In Santa Fe, there’s still anger over that Merentiel goal he didn’t rule out in the draw against Boca, so tensions with the officiating are already running high. On VAR will be Fernando Espinoza and José Castelli, a duo that always gets people talking. The on-field officiating crew is completed by Hugo Páez and Daiana Milone.

Madelón knows that winning in La Plata would be a real statement victory to show that this Unión is capable of big things, something he has been emphasizing quite a bit in recent press conferences.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.