A few days before the Clausura 2026 tournament begins, the Águilas del América are fine-tuning details in their sports planning and one of the movements that is emerging is the return of goalkeeper Fernando Tapia. The goalkeeper will report this week with the Coapa club, after saying goodbye to the Tigres team, the team in which he remained during the last semester.
The Águilas will bring back Fernando Tapia, the club’s youth player. The Águilas own 60 percent of the federative rights of the goalkeeper and in the coming days they will finalize the purchase of the remaining 40 percent that belongs to Tigres.
After closing their participation in the Apertura 2025 Liguilla, the coaching staff headed by André Jardine and the azulcrema board began working in advance on assembling the squad for the next tournament. The proximity of the 2026 World Cup forces the club to anticipate possible absences of key players in the final stretch of the championship.
The search for a goalkeeper for Clausura 2026 responds to a particular scenario. Luis Ángel Malagón remains the undisputed starter in the American goal, although his planned call-up to the Mexican National Team will condition his availability in the final part of the tournament, due to the concentration prior to the 2026 World Cup that Javier Aguirre will lead.
Although the dates of the Liguilla and the start of the World Cup will not coincide, the preparation of the national team will cause several players to be released before the close of the championship. In the case of goalkeepers, a similar situation will arise with Raúl ‘Tala’ Rangel, from Chivas, in addition to a possible call-up for Carlos Acevedo, from Santos Laguna.
With this panorama, América projects its goalkeeper squad for Clausura 2026 with Malagón as the starter during the regular phase. Given his temporary departure, André Jardine will have Rodolfo Cota, who will remain in the institution for one more tournament, and with the incorporation of Fernando Tapia, who will compete for the role of second goalkeeper.
In Tigres, Tapia did not have continuity in the first team and added activity mainly with the U-20 category, in addition to serving as a substitute for Nahuel Guzmán. In his second stage with the azulcrema team, the goalkeeper will seek to consolidate himself within the squad and earn a place in the goal rotation for Clausura 2026.
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