Junior closes its Liga Colombiana phase on Thursday with a trip to Deportivo Pasto at estadio Libertad in Pasto, in a match scheduled for 5:00 p.m. The game arrives at the end of a difficult second semester for Junior in 2026, a campaign that has fallen far short of the standards set during the club’s historic bicampeonato.
The most notable absence is Sebastián Viera, who will serve his third suspension date after being sent off against Boyacá Chicó. That leaves Junior without its coach for a match that matters both in the standings and in the broader conversation around the team’s future. Viera’s continuity for 2027 remains uncertain, even as there is an open desire inside the club to keep the project moving forward.
A match with context on both sides
Junior enters the trip after beating Cúcuta Deportivo 2-0 on Monday in Teófilo Gutiérrez’s farewell match, a win that offered a brief lift after an inconsistent run. The team’s league finish, however, remains tied to a disappointing semester and the pressure that comes with closing out a season below expectations.
Deportivo Pasto also reaches the match under unusual conditions. Its professional squad had declared a work stoppage over unpaid wages before a 5-0 loss to Santa Fe, adding more instability to a team already dealing with a rough stretch. That context makes Thursday’s meeting about more than just points; both clubs arrive carrying their own complications into the final date of the phase todos contra todos.
What happens next for Junior
Mario Viera addressed the outlook for the club by noting that the current contract runs until 31 de diciembre and that the intention is to continue in 2027 because of what is coming for the club. He also said Sebastián Viera has the capacity to be Junior’s coach, adding that the family link does not change his assessment of the job the coach can do.
For now, though, the immediate focus is simple: Junior must finish the league phase away from home, without Sebastián Viera on the sideline, against a Deportivo Pasto side trying to regroup in its own stadium. The result will not erase the problems of the semester, but it will help define how the club enters the offseason and how much clarity it has heading into 2027.
