Peñarol grinds out 2-1 win at Cerro in the Clausura

A win is a win, no matter how it comes. That was the takeaway for Peñarol from Luis Tróccoli Stadium, where the club struggled more than expected but still walked away with all three points against Cerro in matchday seven of the 2026 Clausura Tournament. The final score was 2-1 in favor of the Manya, in a match that had a bit of everything: a strong start from the black and yellows, a costly defensive error and a second-half response that settled things down on the visiting bench.

Peñarol went ahead early thanks to Matías Arezo, who opened the scoring in the 14th minute. It looked like it might be a comfortable afternoon for the Manya, but Cerro refused to fold and pulled level in the 26th minute through Emiliano Rodríguez, capitalizing on a mistake in buildup play by Germán Pezzella. With the score tied at 1-1, things got tougher for the visitors, who had to battle a team that "is chasing its own goal," as the Peñarol goalkeeper himself admitted afterward.

The breakthrough came in the second half. In the 77th minute, Leonel Jaime stepped up to hand Peñarol the decisive goal and seal the 2-1 win that let the Manya pick up another three points on the road.

Voices from the locker room

Once the match wrapped up, Arezo was the first to speak and made clear that how the result was achieved mattered less than the result itself.

What matters is winning. Beyond the how and beyond the venue, what matters is that we got three points again. The team is in a really good place, we have to adapt to everything: when we need to defend, we defend, when we need to play, we play.Matías Arezo

Goalkeeper Washington Aguerre also spoke about the win to the club's official media and highlighted just how tough an opponent Cerro was.

The win was important against a tough team that's chasing its own goal. We keep pushing for more.Washington Aguerre

Pezzella, the unwitting protagonist behind the mistake that led to Cerro's goal, didn't stay quiet either. The Argentine defender took to social media to own up to the error while also praising his teammates' response. In a post on Instagram, he wrote: "Great performance from this group to keep fighting and bounce back from a rough moment. Let's stay together and keep looking forward to go for more. Let's go, Peñarol."

With this result, the Manya put a difficult road trip behind them and add three more points on their path through the 2026 Clausura, while Cerro is left with the feeling of having put up a fight but coming away with nothing to show for it on the scoreboard.