Kevin Castañeda appears to be moving closer to a bigger role at Chivas after a slow start affected by knee discomfort. The midfielder, signed as one of the club’s Apertura 2026 reinforcements, has impressed Gabriel Milito in training and may now be in line for more minutes.
That matters because Chivas brought Castañeda in to strengthen the squad, but his early availability was limited by the knee problem that kept him out of the Juego de las Estrellas against the MLS. As his training load has increased, so too has the sense that his place in the rotation is opening up.
Milito appears ready to reward the work
According to Diego Yvey, the discussion around Chivas’ midfield now includes Castañeda again. Yvey said the battle for a place in the middle of the pitch is between Omar Govea, Brian Gutiérrez and Kevin Castañeda, and added that questions over his lack of consistent minutes came after his arrival as an important reinforcement following his time at Xolos.
Yvey also explained the reason for the delay. Castañeda arrived with discomfort in his knee, the same issue that ruled him out of the Juego de las Estrellas against the MLS, and from there his activity has gone from less to more.
Perhaps the clearest sign of progress is the view from within the coaching staff. Yvey said Gabriel Milito has liked Castañeda’s work and performance in training, and that the player is now in good condition. In other words, the next step is no longer about recovery. It is about opportunity.
A chance to answer on the pitch
For Chivas, this is a useful development. A player signed to add quality cannot help much if he spends the early part of the season on the margins, so Castañeda’s return to contention is important in both sporting and squad-planning terms.
It is also a timely boost with the Clásico Tapatío approaching. On Saturday, October 10 at 19:00, Chivas will face Atlas at Estadio Jalisco, and matches like that often tell a manager a lot about which players are ready to handle pressure. If Milito turns to Castañeda there or in the weeks that follow, it will be a clear sign that the knee problem is finally behind him.
There is still work to do before that recovery becomes a full reset, but the direction is encouraging. Castañeda is back in the conversation, and at Chivas that is usually the first step toward earning real minutes.
