Diego Aguirre: "Peñarol is my place in the world"

There are lines a coach says out of obligation, and there are lines that come from somewhere deeper. Diego Aguirre's belongs, without question, to the second group: "obviously it's my place in the world," he said, talking about Peñarol, and he didn't need a second to think it over.

In an exclusive interview with Fix, La Fiera walked through what daily life looks like at Los Aromos and ended up opening a window into memories he's carried for almost four decades now. He explained that the job of a coach means spending several hours a day at the club, but that's not where the story ends: there's something that weighs far more than the clock.

Because of the demands of coaching, you might work six hours a day at a club. But the thing is there are so many memories behind you, so much nostalgia for everything you've lived through, because it all goes by in the blink of an eye… And in 2027 it'll be 40 years since my goal, so we're talking about a wild amount of time, of life…Diego Aguirre

That goal he mentions isn't a small detail for anyone who knows his history with the black and gold jersey. And that's the key to all of it: even though Aguirre came up through Liverpool's youth ranks, it was at Peñarol where he lived what he himself describes as an incredible run early in his career, full of successes that tied him to the club forever.

Peñarol is my place in the world because, even though I was developed at Liverpool, I had an incredible run early in my career, full of successes, that bonded me to the club forever.Diego Aguirre

He then rounded out the thought with something that sounds almost like a love letter to the club: everything he lived through is written into the club's history, and that's why he feels the way he feels. "And obviously it's my place because of everything I've experienced and my eternal gratitude to Peñarol," he added, with no hesitation.

A bond that was already written

This isn't the first time Aguirre has spoken in these terms. Back in December 2024, he had already told ESPN Uruguay that being at Peñarol gives you the chance to make so many people happy, something that carries a different weight for a coach with his career than any other achievement.

And there's one detail that frames this story on an even bigger scale. Óscar Washington Tabárez himself, the Maestro, wrote in his book Las puertas de la memoria (Editorial Planeta) a line that seems to speak directly to Aguirre's own words: "My place in the world is the Uruguayan national team. And Diego's is Peñarol." The fact that it's Tabárez saying it, given everything he represents in Uruguayan soccer, adds even more weight to that sense of belonging that Aguirre brings up every time he's asked about his present at Los Aromos.