Never change a winning team? Medrán's dilemma for San Miguel visit | OneFootball

Colón’s win over Patronato in Paraná was no ordinary victory. It meant ending a heavy eight-month streak without taking all three points away from home, a stigma that had been haunting the squad and that they finally managed to shake off. After a lackluster first half, the team showed its best side after the break, achieving a collective solidity that could even have led to a more emphatic rout.

With this emotional boost, the Sabalero is already setting its sights on next Saturday’s match against San Miguel. However, the strong performance in the second half in Paraná poses a tactical question for Ezequiel Medrán: is it time to make changes to the team, or is it better to keep faith with the same starting eleven that brought home the three points?

The main question mark is in midfield. Against Patronato, the coach surprised everyone by lining up a “triple 5” for the first time, made up of Federico Lértora, Ignacio Antonio, and Matías Muñoz. This setup gave the team defensive solidity and control of the center of the pitch, which proved decisive in dominating the match, but there is still doubt over whether it is the ideal approach for playing in Santa Fe, where the demands of playing at home usually call for greater attacking intensity.

In that regard, Medrán is weighing whether to keep that holding block or sacrifice one of the defensive midfielders to add more pieces in attack. If he decides to take the risk, the most logical alternatives appear to be Lucas Cano, as a penalty-box reference, or Darío Sarmiento, to provide individual flair down the wings and support the team’s passing game.

Aside from that specific doubt in central midfield, the rest of the structure seems to be settled. The alarm bells that rang during the last match after Leandro Allende and Ignacio Lago went off were quickly silenced: both players are in optimal physical condition and trained alongside the group, so they will start on Saturday.

Thus, with almost all the pieces in place, Colón will look to build on what it did in Paraná and finally start becoming truly strong in front of its home fans.

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