Re-building León

Data from Wyscout, FBRef, Golstats and Fotmob, photo from Soy Fiera.

In this series of articles, I’m analyzing the current situation of a few teams, their squads, and profiles that they should be looking at to improve in the future. The third team is León.

This article/series is inspired by articles from https://www.thetransferflow.com/

Re-building Pumas: https://cambiodejuegoenglish.beehiiv.com/p/re-building-pumas-d0dc

Re-building Tigres: https://cambiodejuegoenglish.beehiiv.com/p/re-building-tigres-1331

The situation

León had a strange season. It began with a surprise eight wins in ten matches, and ended with just one victory in nine. Whilst the Club World Cup news may have impacted the team mentally, the underlying numbers didn’t change too much during the season. Their xG moving average stuck between +0.2 and -0.2 during the majority of the campaign. León is an average Liga MX team right now, which enjoyed better results than their underlying numbers at the start of the season (thanks to good finishing and goalkeeping), followed by worse results than their performances deserved in their final matches.

Comparing León to other sides shows an average team in attack and defense, but with a distinct play style. La Fiera showed little intensity out of possession, which is to be expected given the work-rates of players like James Rodríguez, Andrés Guardado and Jhonder Cádiz.

In possession, León were a more direct side, exploiting counter-attack opportunities. This was a continuation of Jorge Bava’s ideas, but a considerable change from the León that we knew during Nacho Ambriz’s years in charge, and the following regimes of Ariel Holán and Renato Paiva. Now, it seems important to re-discover some aspects of this play style. The majority of teams that play direct football combined with less defensive intensity have worse results, and León struggled to control their matches or create opportunities against organized defenses.

Eduardo Berizzo will stay as head coach, and it seems that James is likely to play for another season, creating some challenges for León’s squad building. The directors must think further ahead than just Apertura 2025, but the temptation to build around James is understandable.

Red bar = Worse ranking in the league. Green bar = Better ranking in the league. The numbers in the bars refer to the percentile ranks. For some defensive metrics, like xG or PPDA, a higher percentile rank shows a worse performance.

Goalkeepers: Stick to the rotation policy?

There doesn’t appear to be many problems in the León goal. Berizzo rotated between Alfonso Blanco and Óscar Jiménez during Clausura 2025, with both offering different strengths. Blanco is limited in build-up, and stays more on his line, but was an excellent shot-stopper in 2024-25, including key saves in 1vs1 situations. Jiménez isn’t as effective at shot-stopping, but is more aggressive at cutting-out crosses and has more quality on the ball.

Berizzo just has to decide if he’ll continue to rotate, or if he prefers Jiménez to develop their build-up play.

Center-backs: Hope that Frías can play more minutes

Stiven Barreiro is one of the best center-backs in Liga MX right now. He excels in almost every key concept that would be looked for in a defender; aggressive with good reading of the game, physically dominant, effective in the air, efficient at marking in the box and with plenty of talent to help with ball progression.

Improving Adonis Frías’ availability will be very important for León next season. Frías is another aggressive center-back, with a strong aerial game and quality on the ball. The Argentine just needs to refine his decision making regarding when’s best to jump or hold his position, or get better protection in-front, as his 1vs1 defending has been a weakness.

Paul Bellón is a significant downgrade, and Berizzo ended last season with more confidence in Rodrigo Echeverría as the back-up to Frías.

Full-backs: Looking for an upgrade on the left

Using Salvador Reyes in a back-four has negatively impacted his attacking output, and the left-back doesn’t have many other strengths. Reyes is now 27, and therefore isn’t likely to improve much in future years, therefore a new left-back should be a priority.

Giving more minutes to Mauricio Isaías, who hasn’t played much with León, is an option. Isaías is more effective in build-up, and at defending in 1vs1 and aerial duels, but offers little going forwards.

For a more attacking option, I would recommend the same stand-outs from the U23 league that we looked at in the Pumas analysis; Carlos Frayde from Monterrey, Franco Rossano from América and Kenneth Jaime from Tigres. As in the Pumas case, it would be a low-risk decision, if Isaías stays, with a high potential upside.

On the right, Iván Moreno has also been negatively impacted by moving away from a back-five (under Nicolás Larcamón) to a back-four. Berizzo has used Moreno is more advanced roles, but his minutes, performances, and value, have all dropped. It’s a good example of the importance of considering player roles when changing a head coach.

If León, in the long-term, will stick to a back-four, it makes sense to move Moreno on, and stick with Sebastián Santos and Édgar Guerra.

Santos was a huge surprise during 2024-25. An attacking-midfielder in his academy days, who threatened with his dribbling ability and box arrivals, Santos has adapted to become a defensive full-back in the first team. Playing behind James may have been a factor, but Santos never generated close to this defensive impact in the León academy. It’s impressive, and the 22-year-old could have a big future. Santos should be able to improve his attacking impact given his past, and perhaps just needs a little more protection and license to go forwards.

Édgar Guerra is more erratic, but is a player with high physical capabilities who’s effective in attacking and defensive 1vs1 situations. He’s a useful member of the squad, offering pace on the right-wing, as a full-back or winger.

Midfielders: A defensive midfielder to improve out of possession

Andrés Guardado has (probably) retired, for the second time, and therefore León must replace his 1,579 minutes during 2024-25. Someone who can better protect the center of the pitch and recover the ball more frequently seems important.

Nicolás Fonseca is their best central midfielder right now, but has a tendency to leave his zone to press the ball, and therefore a holding midfielder that can cover behind him would be beneficial.

Rodrigo Echeverría scored three goals thanks to his aerial ability and box arrivals, but León need more defensive output than this.

Sebastián Fierro is a defensive midfielder, but played few minutes during Clausura 2025 and didn’t stand-out much in the Tigres academy.

It’s rumoured that León are close to signing Fernando Beltrán from Chivas. The 27-year-old midfielder isn’t a holding midfielder, and there are some doubts of his suitability with León, as he isn’t great out of possession. Also, his main asset, progressive carries, tend to drop after 28, and therefore is unlikely to be the same player in the final years of his contract. However, his style of play will drop León’s directness and improve their ball retention, particularly when the opposition presses.

A holding-mid will still be necessary, and here are some options.

The short-term option

Want to greatly improve the in possession game right now, but need to find another signing next year? Rafael Carioca could be available for León. It isn’t efficient for a team to only think in the short-term, and change the squad frequently, but if there isn’t a good, realistic option in the mid-to-long term, a player like Carioca could fill the spot for a year.

The long-term option

Lautaro Ríos is a player who stands-out for his defensive impact. The 24-year-old plays for Banfield, is excellent out of possession, and still has time to develop on the ball.

The defensive option

If León are confident in the ball progression abilities of their center-backs, James, Fonseca and Beltrán, they could look for a completely defensive option. Fabián Ángel from Junior in Colombia could be this option, considering his excellent ball recovery numbers. Ángel has played more minutes this season than previous years, but could still be available at a reasonable price.

The European option

Miguel Atienza, 26, has played more than 8,500 minutes with Burgos in La Liga 2 in the past three seasons. Like Fabián Ángel, he’s a frequent ball recoverer, but has a bit more quality on the ball, and is coming from a slightly higher quality league.

The Mexican option

As mentioned in the Pumas article, Brandon Téllez, 20, stood-out massively with Tapatío this season, and may not receive opportunities with the first team in the following campaign. Téllez’s level was very high in Liga de Expansión, and the midfielder deserves a chance in the top division. He could be a short-term loan option, or a long-term investment.

Attacking midfielders: More youth is needed

James has been, more or less, exactly what I’d predicted before the season. The best passer in the league, frequently dropping to receive more touches of the ball, but with few dribbles, or shots from dangerous positions, and very little defensive work.

Berizzo hasn’t managed to find a solution to cover his lack of defensive work. If he plays as a number ten, their opponents have easily been able to progress the ball past the first line, and if he starts on the right, there’s space out wide to exploit. If Beltrán arrives, James will likely get more minutes from the right.

James is one of four León attacking-midfielders above 30-years-old, and whilst Stiven Mendoza defies his age, the club are suffering the consequences of signings players like Emiliano Rigoni and Carlos Cisneros. Both have passed their peak, and didn’t make much of an impact last season. León need to look for younger players, and improve their options on the bench to change games.

An attacker with the movement and speed to exploit James’ passes would be a benefit, but I believe that a good dribbler is key. This type of player could reduce the reliance on James, and help when León can’t exploit direct passes and have to face a compact block.

The best option

Was there a problem between Guillermo Almada and Francisco Figueroa? Did Liga MX teams lack confidence in him after playing just 14 minutes with Toluca? Either way, someone needs to sign “Tony” now, and thank me later.

His output in 2022-23 with Pachuca was incredible.

And in 2024-25, Figueroa is tearing up the Liga de Expansión. He’s still just 25-years-old, and a team could tie down years of high creativity this summer.

The Pachuca loan option

Jesús Hernández is currently on loan from Pachuca, but there are wingers with more talent and output in Los Tuzos, and Alexei Domínguez isn’t playing much. Domínguez is just 20, and flexible in his positioning, as he can play from both flanks. He’s another winger with the ball carrying and movement to be able to get into dangerous positions and create chances.

The Mendoza replacement

Alan Sosa is a 22-year-old winger at Gimnasia y Esgrima, with similar traits to Mendoza. Sosa is a goal-scoring wide attacker, but doesn’t create too many chances for teammates. In the short-term, Sosa could be used to sub-on for the Colombian winger, with the view to him growing into a starting role over the longer-term.

The instant impact option

Panamanian Ismael Díaz, 28, doesn’t have many more peak seasons ahead of him but has consistently performed at a level that suggests he could take a step-up from Ecuador. With the flexibility to play from the left or through the center, Díaz frequently generates his own shots, averaging above three per game in multiple seasons. With his movement, Díaz could make the most of James’ passing quality, however, his lack of defensive work is a worry.

Striker: A better back-up

It’s possible that Federico Viñas will return to León this season, which would likely lead to Jhonder Cádiz leaving the side. Both strikers are strong in the air, but Viñas is a more well-rounded striker and presses more out of possession, which would help make up for James’ lack of work-rate.

A better back-up is required, taking into account the lack of impact that Ettson Ayón’s had in his minutes.

The economical option

Illian Hernández hasn’t played enough professional minutes for a 25-year-old, but has suggested enough quality to be a Liga MX striker. He has a great mentality to work defensively, a better aerial game than Ayón and an average of a goal every 2.5 games in Liga MX. He’ll probably be available, considering his lack of participation with Pachuca in Apertura 2024.

The aerial threat

León at times suffered against compact blocks, when they couldn’t open up the match by scoring first. A “plan B” from the bench may help them create more from set-pieces and crosses into the box. Vladimir Moragrega has consistently been one of the best strikers in the Liga de Expansión in recent years, and is still just 26.

Maintaining his goal-scoring efficiency in the top division isn’t likely, but historically, aerial ability hasn’t changed too much between the two leagues.

The long-term bet

It would be a risk, but there’s a 19-year-old showing great potential in the Liga de Expansión. Érick Espinosa has a different profile, as he isn’t effective in the air or at connecting attacks. However, his movement has been excellent, and Espinosa regularly gets into dangerous shooting positions. With better finishing, Espinosa could be a regular goal-scorer in Liga MX.

You can read a full analysis of Espinosa in this article:

Summary:

• Move Salvador Reyes on and strengthen the position.

• Find a new defensive midfielder to improve the side out of possession.

• One or two younger attacking-midfielders; Figueroa is the best option, and León could loan someone from Pachuca with more quality than Jesús Hernández.

• A more effective back-up for Cádiz/Viñas.

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