Santiago Morning is preparing to begin its fight to return to Primera B. The microbus team starts the 2026 season this Sunday facing Colchagua (18:00), with promotion as its main priority. To achieve this goal, the bohemian squad has bet on one of its figures for the coaching position: Esteban Paredes.
A few weeks ago, the top scorer in Chilean football was officially announced as the head coach of the men's first team. “We are happy to announce the start of a new stage. Esteban Paredes leads the coaching staff that will guide the destiny of La V negra this season,” they shared on Instagram.
The former Colo Colo player will be joined by another former scorer, Leonardo Monje, as assistant coach. Hernán Torres will serve as the physical trainer, and Cristian Limenza will be the goalkeeping coach. However, Paredes will not be able to be on the field to give instructions.
This is because he is still in the process of obtaining the necessary license to do so and to avoid point deductions. It is worth noting that in the 2025 season, Santiago Morning faced issues due to the presence of the then-sports manager giving instructions without authorization. This led to complaints from Cobreloa and Magallanes, and the ANFP's Disciplinary Tribunal ended up deducting six points from Santiago Morning.
However, the Second Chamber of the Tribunal dismissed the complaint, which prevented the loss of points. To try to retu…
He is joined by Cristián Magaña, who was trained at Cacique and has a long career in national football, having played for Everton, Unión San Felipe, Deportes Puerto Montt, and Deportes Melipilla. “We reinforced the last line with the arrival of Cristián Magaña. The experienced central defender joins the Bohemians from Deportes Melipilla to bring his presence and solidity,” they highlighted in his presentation.
One of the latest updates from Santiago Morning is the return of Nicolás Palomo, who debuted professionally at the club and returns after playing for Santiago City. As a precaution, Esteban Paredes will be present at the match against Colchagua from one of the boxes at the Municipal Stadium of La Pintana due to the lack of the license he is working to obtain. He announced this before the match.
“I still don’t have the title, I’m a month away from completing it, I’m taking private classes, with tutors who will see me every day. Conmebol requires a number of hours, and I still have some to complete. I’m working more than 8 hours a day to achieve it,” he stated in a conversation with the program Tipsters.
“I won’t be able to be on the bench, I also can’t go to the locker room; we have to be careful about photos, that they see us there, otherwise they could take points from us. I’ll be in the box watching the boys,” he added later. He also reflected on his admiration for Pep Guardiola and Marcelo Bielsa and expressed his desire to develop his own style.
“One has to implement their own stamp, mixing from different coaches I’ve had and watching football. I’ve had several good coaches, and you can learn something from all of them,” he expressed. Finally, he confessed that his great goal is to reach the bench of Colo Colo.
“It’s a long process; I would like to reach Colo Colo, but I’m just starting this journey, but of course, it’s a goal. To reach Primera División, to go to a Copa Libertadores. I will always be willing to go to Colo Colo; I have to go through stages before reaching the biggest team in Chile.
I will always be available.