Cerro Porteño prepares for season with new signings, friendly matches

Cerro Porteño is in full preparation mode for the demanding second half of the football season, which includes the Clausura championship, the Copa Paraguay, and the Copa Libertadores. The team's training activities are underway at their facilities in Barrio Obrero and the Parque Azulgrana in Ypané, with a concentration planned in Lambaré.

The club has secured new talent, including Alexis Cañete from Nacional, and Argentines Agustín Almendra and Lucas Merolla, who previously played in Mexico. However, their official presentation and registration are on hold due to a FIFA sanction prohibiting player inscription, which the club is working to lift. Iván "Súper" Ramírez, recently released from Libertad, has also joined the squad. Midfielder Derlis Rodríguez has returned from a loan spell with Guaraní and is likely to remain with the team.

Cerro Porteño is also actively seeking one or two goalkeepers, anticipating the departure of Alexis Martín Arias and potentially Roberto "Gatito" Fernández. The club has confirmed the exits of Cristhian Paredes, Rodrigo Melgarejo, Wilder Viera, Luis Amarilla, Gastón Giménez, Santiago Mosquera, Abel Luciatti, and Fabrizio Peralta, with Alan Soñora, Arias, and Fernández also expected to leave. The team will play four friendly matches in Argentina in July against Defensa y Justicia, Riestra, Gimnasia y Esgrima de La Plata, and Vélez Sarsfield before the Clausura 2026 begins on July 24.