LDU Quito and Peñarol faced each other in the second matchday of the U20 Copa Libertadores. LDU Quito operated in a 4-2-3-1 and saw most of the possession in this game, trying to build out from the back. Peñarol liked to wait patiently for LDU Quito to make mistakes and created more chances than the Ecuadorians, thanks to mistakes by LDU. In the end, both sides missed a penalty but Peñarol managed to score two goals, winning the match 0-2 and securing a place in the next round of the Copa Libertadores U20.
Youth Ratings
1 – Ready for the first team
2 – Good, potential to be first team
3 – Decent, could make first team squad
4 – Decent potential, unlikely to make it to first team
5 – Unlikely to make first team
Randall Rodríguez
Player profile
- Nationality: Uruguayan
- Age: 18
- Date of birth: 29/11/2003
- Club: Peñarol
- Career: Peñarol
- Position: Goalkeeper
- Preferred foot: Right
Randall Rodriguez played as a goalkeeper for Penarol in the match against LDU Quito. The goalkeeper is ~188cm tall and has a muscular build. He did not look like a great athlete but looked good coming off his line, always being on time. The Uruguayan has an average long passing technique, but most of his long passes were quite accurate. Randall Rodriguez liked to be far from his own goal (and nearly got beat by Zambrano from his own half because of this) and came off his line very well. He had a few very sloppy passes. Rodriguez saved the penalty and had a good reflex after, but he was the reason that LDU Quito got the penalty in the first place as he was too wild and uncontrolled in the duel with Solis.
Rating – 4
He did not have to do that much, but also did not show that much ability. Rodriguez did not look like a great athlete and his passing technique was quite average.
Joaquín Ferreira
Player profile:
- Nationality: Urugauyan
- Age: 18
- Date of birth: 02/07/2003
- Club: Peñarol
- Career: Peñarol
- Position: Right-Back
- Preferred foot: Right
Joaquin Ferreira played as Penarol’s right-back and failed to make a good impression in this match. The right-back stands at approximately 183cm, but I think that he is a bit taller. He has long legs and a slim build. The Uruguayan was not quick on the first meters and did not show good pace over longer distances. He seemed to struggle to change directions while sprinting too. His technique was quite bad and he was really wild on the ball. Peñarol did not get into possession that much this game and they did not build out from the back patiently, but when Ferreira got on the ball he did not really know what to do with it. The Uruguayan was only involved in one attack, making a good run in behind. The 18-year-old really struggled to win 1v1 duels against Madison Mina, who did not show that much potential, as he overcommitted and did not stay on his feet. Joaquin Ferreira only showed once that he has good slide tackling. Most of his defensive actions were in the defensive third.
Rating – 4
Joaquin Ferreira did not show any promising signs in this match and I don’t think he showed potential in any of the following aspects: physical, athletic, tactical or technical.
Matías González
Player profile:
- Nationality: Uruguayan
- Age: 19
- Date of birth: 29/11/2002
- Club: Penarol
- Career: Penarol
- Position: Central Defender
- Preferred foot: Right
Matias Gonzalez played as the right central defender for Penarol and formed a pairing with Lopez. Gonzalez stands at ~183cm with a slim to muscular build (couldn’t see it properly). The Uruguayan looked quite agile in the ground duels, but was not capable of changing directions when sprinting (with the ball at his feet). Gonzalez looked strong in the duels and won most of his ground duels. However, on the ball, Gonzalez looked really bad. Gonzalez received quite some passes from the goalkeeper as they build out from the back, but both central defenders often kicked the ball forward without looking. Gonzalez was not any different, showing bad technique when kicking it forward and not composing himself on the ball. Most of his defensive actions were near his own box and Peñarol did not concede many chances. Gonzalez looked really passionate and often celebrated it loudly when he won a duel.
Rating – 3
I think it would be a wise idea to focus more on Gonzalez, as he showed some signs of potential and he was quite agile in the ground duels, next to having a good build for a central defender. Next match I will focus on Gonzalez, as he might be a good no-nonsense central defender in a low-block.
Pablo López
Player profile:
- Nationality: Uruguayan
- Age: 19
- Date of birth: 01/03/2002
- Club: Penarol
- Career: Penarol
- Position: Central Defender
- Preferred foot: Left
Pablo Lopez played as a left central defender and formed a pairing with Gonzalez. The defender stands at ~182cm and has a slim build. Even though he has a slim build and does not have long legs, he looked slow on the turn and had bad agility. Lopez did not look quick and did not have good changes of direction. The Uruguayan defender, as Penarol did not build out from the back patiently, often kicked the ball forward blindly and he did not seem to possess any potential in his passing. His short passing was alright, but I think that he only attempted about five short passes. The Uruguayan 19-year-old positioned himself well when dealing with crosses, which helped him to clear the ball often. Lopez liked to step out of the defensive line and was aggressive. The defender tried to close gaps to the wing but sometimes lost that duel as he was not that agile and did not change directions that quickly.
Rating – 4
I don’t think Lopez has much potential, as his physical and athletic profile don’t look good. His technical ability is way below average too.
Mathías De Ritis
Player profile:
- Nationality: Uruguayan
- Age: 19
- Date of birth: 31/01/2003
- Club: Penarol
- Career: Penarol
- Position: Left-Back
- Preferred foot: Left
Mathias De Ritis played as a left-back in this match. He stands at ~183cm with a muscular build. The Uruguayan defender has a lot of power and looked quick on the first few meters. However, he did not use this in the right way. De Ritis liked to step out of the defensive line and cut passing lanes well, but he was very wild in the ground duels and overcommitted quite often in defensive duels. This led to a lot of fouls and he also lost a few duels against Oscar Sosa, who didn’t show much potential. His defensive positioning was questionable too, as he rarely stayed in the defensive line and often played too high up the pitch. On the ball, De Ritis had a bad first touch and ball control, next to a bad crossing technique. His short passing was decent. De Ritis had adequate passing over the byline. His crossing was very inaccurate and often too powerful. De Ritis did not get into possession that much in the build-up. Most of his defensive actions were close to his own box. The Uruguayan looked really passionate and sometimes even annoying in this match. He often celebrated very loudly in the opponent’s eyes and was always asking for his opponent to get yellow cards.
Rating – 4
I don’t think he has a lot of potential in the technical or tactical aspects. He has good physical ability, but did not use this in the right manner.
Damián García
Player profile:
- Nationality: Uruguayan
- Age: 18
- Date of birth: 15/07/2003
- Club: Penarol
- Career: Penarol
- Position: Central Midfielder
- Preferred foot: Right
Damian Garcia played as a right central midfielder in the match against LDU Quito. He is 177cm tall and has a slim build. Garcia did not look talented in the physical and athletic aspects, not being strong in the ground duels and losing most aerial duels. Garcia did not look that quick on the ball and seemed to play with a very low intensity when trying to take on his opponent, despite having good ball coordination and close control. The Uruguayan has good technical ability, having both good short and long passing. As Penarol did not control possession that much, Garcia was not able to show his ball-playing skills. The Uruguayan midfielder had good vision to spot Ayovi being far from his goalline, even trying to beat him from 40m out and almost scoring. The midfielder also had good off the ball movement. Defensively, Garcia sometimes was too late in the ground duels and did not look talented in the defensive aspect. Most of his defensive actions were in between the midfield and defensive third of Penarol. His offensive actions were often near the halfway line, but he also occasionally got into possession in the final third.
Rating – 4
I did not see much potential in the physical and athletic aspects, but he had a good technical ability. I will take a further look at him in the next game.
Ademir Silva
Player profile:
- Nationality: Uruguayan
- Age: 19
- Date of birth: 16/11/2002
- Club: Penarol
- Career: Penarol
- Position: Defensive Midfielder
- Preferred foot: Right
Ademir Silva played as a defensive midfielder in this match. He stands at ~170cm with a slim build. Silva looked quite quick on the first few meters but did not have good pace over longer distances. His changes of directions and agility were not showed this match. Technically, he looked really good. Ademir Silva has a good passing technique over short and longer distances. Penarol did not build out from the back, which meant that Silva’s best attributes were not exploited in this match. He had a pre-assist for the 0-1 after playing a great over the top through pass. Defensively, Silva had good awareness when dealing with crosses and managed to clear a few of them. However, his defensive positioning did not look that good. Playing as a defensive midfielder in a 4-1-4-1 out of possession, he did not show enough discipline to stay in position as he was often found putting pressure on the opponent’s backline. Ademir Silva only rarely got into possession on the opposition’s half, one of which ended in a pre-assist. His defensive actions were mostly in the midfield third.
Rating – 3
I think Ademir Silva’s technical ability is very good, which means that he is an interesting player to keep an eye out for despite not having a good physical ability. Ademir Silva should play higher up the pitch as one of the two central midfielders.
Santiago Homenchenko
Player profile:
- Nationality: Uruguayan
- Age: 18
- Date of birth: 30/08/2003
- Club: Penarol
- Career: Plaza Colonia, Penarol
- Position: Defensive Midfielder
- Preferred foot: Left
Santiago Homenchenko played as a left central midfielder and got subbed off after 60 minutes, in which he was very disappointing. Standing at 185cm with a slim to muscular build, Homenchenko was not capable of changing directions quickly. The Uruguayan was not agile in the duels and looked quite slow. He was not quick over longer distances too. Homenchenko tried to get involved in the build-up by moving wide in possession, but he only rarely received the ball in this area as both central defenders often played a long pass. Homenchenko did not have a good ball coordination when dribbling, as he struggled with his footwork. His passing was average and he did not have a good touch. Homenchenko took indirect free-kicks but failed to aim the crosses towards the right direction, also hitting the free-kick with too much power. There was also one situation in which Homenchenko could be dangerous on the counter, but he looked indecisive and not quick enough. Most of his defensive actions were in between the defensive and midfield third. Most of his offensive actions were near the halfway line.
Rating – 5
Santiago Homanchenko did not show any potential in this match, as he did not have an interesting physical or athletic profile, while also having a bad technique.
Diego Méndez
Player profile:
- Nationality: Uruguayan
- Age: 19
- Date of birth: 27/07/2002
- Club: Penarol
- Career: Penarol
- Position: Right-Winger
- Preferred foot: Right
Diego Mendez played as a right winger in this match and showed some promising signs in the physical and athletic aspects. Standing at ~175cm with a slim build, the Uruguayan could turn away from his marker really quickly. He has good changes of direction. Diego Mendez showed good acceleration and was capable of maintaining this speed over longer distances. The Uruguayan had most of his 1v1 duels with his opponent in between the final and midfield third. When he reached the final third, Diego Mendez proved to have a decent crossing technique from open play, but he only showed this once as he did not often progress the ball into the final third. From dead-ball situations, Diego Mendez put way too much power on the ball. The Uruguayan winger was not that involved in the first 30 minutes, but saw more of the ball later on in the game. Diego Mendez showed good composure in the final third and was determined.
Rating – 3
He showed some good signs and I am curious to see how he will perform against clubs like Independiente del Valle.
Santiago Díaz
Player profile:
- Nationality: Uruguayan
- Age: 18
- Date of birth: 31/08/2003
- Club: Penarol
- Career: Penarol
- Position: Striker
- Secondary position: Winger
- Preferred foot: Right
Santiago Diaz played as a striker in this match. He stands at around 180cm with a slim to muscular build. Diaz looked interesting in the athletic and physical areas, showing good changes of directions when sprinting. He was agile and quick on the first meters. However, he did not look strong in the duels. What helped him in the ground duels was his aggressiveness, next to being tenacious. As Penarol did not build out from the back patiently and simply kicked the ball forward blindly, Diaz did not get involved in the play much. He showed good link-up play when he dropped deep and has good shooting technique. His shooting power was good, but he failed to aim his effort towards the corner. His first touch with his chest was good. Santiago Diaz was really smart to put pressure on Cordova at his blindside and made life very uneasy for him in the duels. Santiago Diaz had smart off the ball movement. The highlight of his 61 minutes was the goal he scored in the second half. He was the most alert to react to the rebound after Ayovi saved Alonso’s effort.
Rating – 2
Santiago Diaz was not that much involved in the build-up and I think he showed good potential in the athletic, physical, tactical and technical areas. I will take a further look at him in the next match.
Máximo Alonso
Player profile:
- Nationality: Uruguayan
- Age: 19
- Date of birth: 05/07/2002
- Club: Penarol
- Career: Penarol
- Position: Left-Winger
- Preferred foot: Left
Maximo Alonso played as a left-winger in the match against LDU Quito. He stands at approximately 180cm and has a slim to muscular build. The Uruguayan seemed to struggle when changing directions while sprinting. He needed to slow down by a lot before he could change directions and it did not look that smoothly. Alonso always went on the outside of his opponent and had decent acceleration. He is capable of maintaining that speed over longer distances but did not look that pacey. The Uruguayan has a good technique when dribbling and has a good passing technique. Sometimes he was sloppy and he had bad decision-making at times. Maximo Alonso liked to carry the ball inside and liked to be involved in the build-up by dropping deep in the half-space. He had good one-touch passes to the left-back. The winger made a good run in behind which led to the 0-1 of Penarol. He made a run on Daniel De La Cruz’s blindside and nearly scored but his effort was saved. However, the rebound went in.
Rating – 3
I want to see more of Maximo Alonso, even though he seems to be doing the same move over and over again. He has a good technical ability and has a good build, but did not look that quick.