On Friday January 3, the team of Xelajúreigning champion of Guatemalan football and winner of the Apertura Tournament 2024 after beating Cobán Imperial 3-2 in the final, has returned to training with the aim of starting Clausura 2025 and defending his title, a feat that the last six years have not allowed.
Amarini Villatorocoach of the team, is trying to compose the ideal eleven for the team’s first official match, scheduled for Saturday January 12 at home against Malacateco. For this, a friendly match has been scheduled, on Wednesday January 8, against Deportivo Suchitepéquez of the First Division, at Mario Camposeco, the time of which remains to be confirmed.
With this in mind, the coach will try to line up the players who could enter the field against Malacateco to score points, knowing that preparation time is limited. To date, the ‘xelas’ have only signed one former player from the team, William Cardoza22 years old, who returned from a six-month stay in Greece.
Villatoro could give the striker some playing time to evaluate him before the next competitions, while making sure to field the majority of the starters who played and won the Torneo Apertura final against Cobán Imperial, because Xelajú has managed to keep the essentials of its workforce and therefore does not deplore any major losses.
The team led by Amarini Villatoro also begins the defense of his title and thus aims for a double, a goal which, over the last six years, has been a real challenge for those who have attempted it. Indeed, the last twelve Liga Nacional de Guatemala tournaments have crowned different championsmaking the double almost utopian.
For the Clausura 2025, Xelajú has a unique opportunity to end this streak and not only aim to reach the final again, but it will also be a challenge. The last club to be crowned champion, Municipalmanaged to reach the final in the following tournament, winning the Torneo Apertura 2019 and being a finalist in the Apertura 2020 (the Clausura 2020 not having taken place due to the pandemic).
Takeaways
- Xelajú is the reigning champion, having won the Torneo Apertura 2024 against Cobán Imperial.
- The team is preparing for its first game of the season, scheduled for January 12, 2025.
- A friendly match against Deportivo Suchitepéquez is planned to evaluate the players before the competition.
- The club made only one recruitment, that of William Cardoza, returning from an experience in Greece.
- The quest for the double promises to be complex, because the last champions of the Liga Nacional have often been new teams.
In short, Xelajú’s ambition to retain his title takes place in a competitive context where challenges are numerous. Can this season finally allow a club to confirm its domination of Guatemalan football? Fans and football analysts will closely follow this battle to know the outcome of this adventure.
