Zampedri's 23rd goal of the season lifts Universidad Catolica past Everton

A slide-rule pass, a perfectly timed run and the same old finish. That's how Fernando Zampedri scored his 23rd goal of the season, the strike that gave Universidad Catolica a 1-0 win over Everton this Saturday in the 2026 Liga de Primera. It was no ordinary goal: it was the one keeping the Cruzados' hopes alive in the race for a spot in the next Copa Libertadores.

Zampedri is already a household name in Chilean soccer, but what he's doing this season is starting to outgrow the local scale. The Argentine-born, naturalized Chilean forward is one step away from becoming Chilean soccer's top scorer for the seventh consecutive year, something no other player in the country has ever achieved. There's more: with the tally he's built up, the UC striker is also among the candidates to finish the year as the top goal scorer in world soccer, a possibility that would have sounded far-fetched not long ago for a player in the Chilean league.

What stands out is that Zampedri himself would rather not dwell on those numbers. After the match against the side from Vina del Mar, he was blunt about what actually matters to him.

I don't think about the scale of what I'm doing, I just think about the team, about scoring goals, about doing my part for the team, for the club. This is about working, working, working, because that pays off.Fernando Zampedri

A win with a Libertadores flavor

Beyond his goal, Zampedri made a point of shifting the focus to the team effort. Winning at Everton's ground is no formality for anyone: the Vina del Mar side has a clear identity on the field and doesn't give anything away, something the striker himself acknowledged without hesitation.

"We're taking three very valuable points from a tough ground. Everton play well, their players hold onto the ball well, they move it from side to side. First place slipped away from us," he explained, referring to the fight for the top of the table, which for now remains out of the Cruzados' reach.

But there's a closer target that means just as much to UC: second place, which opens the door straight to the 2027 Copa Libertadores. That's where Zampedri put the emphasis after the win.

We're fighting for second place, which leads to the Copa Libertadores, and that's very important. We've won three in a row now so I'm happy about that.Fernando Zampedri

Three straight wins are, in fact, the best calling card for a team that needs to keep up the pace until the championship's final stretch. And with Zampedri turning into a guaranteed goal threat match after match, Universidad Catolica knows that much of its push toward the Libertadores runs, once again, through its captain's boots.