Millonarios faced América in a pre-season friendly match as part of the Serie Colombia 2025 at the Nemesio Camacho El Campin stadium.
The match, held on Sunday January 19, started at 5:00 p.m. and attracted a large crowd to watch this classic of Colombian football.
For Millonarios, this match marked the second challenge under the management of David González, who took charge following the unexpected departure of Alberto Gamero after more than five years in charge of the team. In their first Serie Colombia match, the ’embajadores’ drew against Melgar of Peru, showing flashes of good football while revealing areas in need of improvement.
The capital team came to this match with notable absences in their starting lineup. Captain David Mackalister Silva was absent due to “knee trauma”, a decision taken by the technical staff to avoid possible complications. Likewise, Danovis Banguero was sidelined due to a virus. On the other hand, defender Jorge Arias, having recovered from a left knee injury, was expected on the field, whether as a starter or coming in to replace Samuel Asprilla.
For their part, América de Cali were looking to redeem themselves after a 0-2 loss to Melgar in their previous match in Serie Colombia. Manager Jorge ‘Polilla’ Da Silva has focused on the potential debut of his new signing Juan Fernando Quintero, who has joined the club on a lucrative deal from Racing. The arrival of Quintero aroused great enthusiasm among the ‘escarlatas’ fans eager to see him play in the red jersey.
-The recent record of direct confrontations slightly favored Millonarios, with five victories in the last meetings, against four for América and one draw. Particularly in El Campín, the domination of the blues was evident, with five wins and four draws in the last nine meetings played in Bogotá.
The Blues opened the scoring in the 44th minute with a penalty following a foul on Daniel Mantilla. Santiago Giordana converted the penalty, giving his team the advantage. América equalized thanks to Sebastián Navarro, who took advantage of a cross from the left to beat Álvaro Montero.
This pre-season classic served not only to allow both teams to fine-tune their tactical and physical aspects before the start of the BetPlay I-2025 Liga, but also to provide fans with a spectacle of high-level football. The presence of new recruits and the application of the coaches’ strategies provided a glimpse of what can be expected during the official competition.
With this match, Millonarios and América de Cali finished their participation in the Serie Colombia and now look towards their respective debuts in the local championship, scheduled for next weekend. The ’embajadores’ will travel to Unión Magdalena in Santa Marta, while the ‘escarlatas’ will host the Llaneros, the venue still to be determined due to the sanctions imposed on Pascual Guerrero.
