Why Marcelo Estigarribia missed the friendly vs. Ben Hur | OneFootball

Marcelo Estigarribia finished the last championship as one of the key players for Leonardo Madelón’s Unión. Alongside Cristian Tarragona, he formed an attacking duo that earned the coach’s trust and ended the semester as one of the main references in the red-and-white attack.

That is why his absence in the two friendlies Unión played this Saturday against Ben Hur de Rafaela drew attention. The forward did not appear in either of the teams the coaching staff tested, and Misael Aguirre took his place alongside Tarragona in the first lineup.

The explanation for Estigarribia’s absence is not linked solely to the claim Atlético Tucumán filed against Unión before the AFA, which led to the freezing of one of the club’s bank accounts over an alleged debt, but mainly to a physical issue.

A knock and individualized training for Estigarribia at Unión

The attacker is dealing with a knock that kept him from being available for the first formal preseason session. For that reason, he has been doing physical therapy and individualized training, with the aim of not pushing him at this stage and allowing him to be in the best possible condition for the start of the Torneo Clausura.

The coaching staff’s decision was to keep him out of the friendly against Ben Hur, where Madelón began looking at attacking alternatives and giving minutes to other players in the squad.

Unión’s focus on Central and Platense

Now, Estigarribia’s progress will be evaluated over the next few days. The forward will be closely monitored by the medical staff, and the coach will assess whether he is fit to get minutes in the next friendly against Rosario Central.

That match will take place on Wednesday, July 15, in the morning, at the Arroyo Seco training ground, and it will be Unión’s final test before their official debut against Platense on Friday, July 24 at 9:15 p.m. in Vicente López.

With Tarragona already up to speed and Aguirre getting minutes, Madelón hopes to recover one of his main attacking pieces as soon as possible. The intention is for Estigarribia to be available again and reach the start of the championship at full strength.

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