América announces significant arrivals, but also sees several of its players leave the club. This Wednesday, January 15, 2025, they officially confirmed the departure of Josen Escobar, who is heading to Al-Ettifaq in Saudi Arabia.
“Josen Escobar will continue his sporting career at Al-Ettifaq in the form of a loan with option to purchase. We wish the young talent, from our lower divisions, all the success possible in this new chapter,” declared América via its X account.
The rumors had started circulating since January 7. That day, transfer market journalist Julián Capera reported that the two parties had reached a verbal agreement and that the loan would extend until June 2025.
Escobar, aged 20, is a known admirer of América de Cali. His market value is currently €2 million, the highest amount of his career to date, according to Transfermarkt’s latest update in December 2024.
Read more:
Impressive Praise for Boca From Chapecoense Tragedy Survivor: ‘It’s a Privilege…’
“I started with a team called Los Almendros in Santa Marta. My father took me there when I was about 6 years old. Then I tried out for Academia Alemana in Popayán; also for Boca here in Cali ; later in Fortaleza, then I returned to the city for the América U20 team,” Josen told El País in November 2023.
In that same conversation he admitted that his dream is to play with FC Barcelona. His move to Saudi football will mark his first international experience, which could bring him closer to his ultimate goal: playing in European football.
Escobar joins Nilson Castrillón, Juan Pablo Múnera, Mateo Zuleta, Alexis Zapata, Edwin Velasco, Jeisson Palacios and Ever Valencia among the starters of the red team, led by Jorge Polilla Da Silva, for the 2025 season.
In addition to local competitions, América is preparing to face the Copa Sudamericana. They have reached the preliminary round, where they will meet the Junior, and if they win, they will advance to the group stage. This situation pushed them to strengthen their squad with high-profile names.
Read more:
Gustavo Cuéllar joins the continent to play in the 2025 Copa Sudamericana
To begin with, Juan Fernando Quintero leaves his time at Racing and joins the Valle del Cauca team. The amount América reportedly paid for the Colombian national team midfielder has been described as significant by both the national and Argentine media.
They also announced the signing of Omar Bertel, a former Millonarios player, as well as several other acquisitions, including Rafael Carrascal. The midfielder, who previously played for Cerro Porteño in Paraguay, was a double champion with the Cali reds in 2019-20 and 2020, and now returns with several challenges ahead.
“As they say, you always have to come back to where you are cherished, where you are special, and I feel like it’s home. Everything motivated me to come back: the people, wearing those colors, going back to Pascual and feel the support of all our fans,” Carrascal said on América’s official social networks.
Read more:
Historic Match and Sale of Danilo Boza: The President of Juventude Reacts After the Duel Against Boca Juniors
Related News :