The closure of the BetPlay II League for Atlético Nacional has left its fans with a deep sense of frustration after their final elimination in the final stages of the Colombian championship. The Pascual Guerrero Stadium in Cali was the scene where the Purslane team sealed one of their most irregular seasons in recent years, missing the opportunity to fight for the title again and leaving Junior from Barranquilla as Group A finalists.
During the decisive game Atlético Nacional showed obvious deficiencies in both defense and attack. The offense lacked precision and assertiveness, while in defense there were inaccuracies and a lack of solidity They made the job easier for América de Cali, who took advantage of the mistakes to say goodbye to their fans with a victory over their classic rivals.
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Both goalkeeper David Ospina and number ten, Edwin Cardona; The team leaders were highlighted for their performance and various actions at crucial moments that ultimately influenced the final result.
The fans’ helplessness quickly led to thousands of messages of dissatisfaction on social networks, where users and supporters of the club did not hide their dissatisfaction with the management and commitments of the current administration.
Names like President Sebastián Arango and sports director Gustavo Fermani were repeatedly cited as directly responsible for the failure.. They are criticized for making hiring decisions and not having adequate planning to deal with the challenges of the season.
Key questions from users include workforce changes that failed to cover key departures:
- “Angulo left, they replaced him with the fragile Cándido”, “Ceppelini left, Bauzá came as a bet”, “Viveros left, Batista came who doesn’t even play”
- “Juárez left, a guy without experience like Gandolfi came.”
Other news calls for the departure of several squad and coaching staff members and calls for a deep restructuring:
- “Arango and Fermani will show their faces? They are the main culprits of this failure, they have made wrong decisions as the settings leave much to be desired and there is no planning.”
The list of footballers and officials highlighted by fans is not short: Gustavo Fermani, Diego Arias, David Ospina, Camilo Cándido, Andrés Román, Edwin Cardona and several others appear in several publications in which An internal cleansing is required and the departure of those who have not lived up to expectations.
An important section of fans describes the collective performance as “a resounding failure in 2025”, recalling that the club stopped winning a title in the first division, was eliminated early from the Copa Libertadores and is now eliminated from the second division, while the possibility of qualifying for an international tournament in 2026 depends on what happens in the final of the BetPlay Cup.
Despite the catastrophe in the league, Atlético Nacional still has the opportunity to fight for a trophy at the end of the season. The Paisa team will face Independiente Medellín in the final of the BetPlay Cup, a series in which winning the title would secure a place in the next edition of the Copa Sudamericana.
Despite it, A large section of fans have stated that ultimately winning the cup will not be enough to “save the year”. given the negative record in the main competitions and the general feeling of a lack of leadership and quality in the squad.
Looking ahead to this final, there are at least some signs of hope for the Colombian “King of Cups”. As journalist Pilar Velásquez reports on the show Classic Paisa from Win sports, Striker Andrés Sarmiento could be available for one of the games in the crucial seriesafter making positive progress in his medical recovery and reacclimation to group training.
Although there is still no official confirmation of his presence, the news sparked moderate optimism among fans, who see Sarmiento as a key part of improving the team’s attack.
The next few days will be crucial for the future of Atlético Nacional, both in the dissolution of the BetPlay Cup, the league final, which would give them a chance of reaching the Copa Libertadoresas in institutional decision-making after a campaign that, according to its supporters and analysts, left much to be desired.
Fans are calling for fundamental change and hope to see the club return to competitive path next season with more cohesive management, more impactful signings and a real commitment to the greatness of the institution.
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