Germán Mera Cáceres (born March 5, 1990) is a Colombian professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a

centre-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categories: centre-backs, full-backs, sweepers ...

Club Brugge KV

After several years as a regular starter at

Deportivo Cali Asociación Deportivo Cali, best known as Deportivo Cali, is a Colombian sports club based in Cali, most notable for its football team, which currently competes in the Categoría Primera A. Deportivo Cali is one of the most successful football t ...

, Germán Mera decided to try his luck in Europe, where he signed with the Belgian top club Club Brugge KV. However, at Club Brugge, there was a lot of competition and Mera barely played. In half a season, he only made two appearances.

KV Mechelen

Germán Mera joined

KV Mechelen Yellow Red Koninklijke Voetbalclub Mechelen (), often called KV Mechelen (, KVM) or simply by their former French name Malinois /ˌmalɪˈnwɑː/, is a Belgian professional association football, football club based in Mechelen in the Antwerp (pr ...

on a permanent transfer in January 2018 from Club Brugge, where he struggled to find playing time. Normally a stable mid-table team, KV Mechelen found themselves in the relegation zone at the time of his arrival. Unfortunately, in his first few matches, Mera did not make a good impression, and the team was relegated to the second division. However, in his second season, under new coach

Wouter Vrancken Wouter Vrancken (born 3 February 1979) is a Belgian football manager and a former defensive midfielder. He currently coaches Sint-Truidense after previously making his name at KV Mechelen and Genk. Playing career Wouter Vrancken started his pl ...

, Mera became a defensive anchor, helping the team even set a new record for the longest unbeaten defense in the second division (464 minutes). Additionally, Mera's impressive physical abilities made him a deadly threat on set pieces, as he scored several times with his head. At the end of the season, KV Mechelen was promoted back to the first division. That same year, KV Mechelen also won the

Belgian Cup The Belgian Cup (; ; ) is the main knockout football competition in Belgium, run by the Royal Belgian FA. The competition started in 1908 with provincial selections as the "Belgian Provinces Cup". Starting from 1912 only actual clubs were allowed ...

, an exceptional achievement for a second division team. In the cup final, Mera scored the winning goal, securing his place in the team's history. In the summer of 2019, Mera returned to Colombia, but he left KV Mechelen as a fan favorite. Despite his initial struggles, he became a crucial player in the team's success, and his performances helped inspire the team to their incredible achievements in the 2018-2019 season.

Honours

Deportivo Cali *

Categoría Primera A The Categoría Primera A (), commonly referred to as Liga BetPlay Dimayor due to Sponsor (commercial), sponsorship by online betting company BetPlay, is a professional association football league in Colombia and the highest level of the Colombian ...

: 2015-I Mechelen *

: 2018–19 Atlético Junior *

Superliga Colombiana The Superliga Colombiana (''Colombian Superleague''), officially known as Superliga BetPlay Dimayor due to sponsorship by online betting company BetPlay, is an official competition contested between the winners of the Apertura and Finalización t ...

2020 Superliga Colombiana The 2020 Superliga Colombiana (known as the Superliga Águila 2020 for sponsorship purposes) was the ninth edition of the Superliga Colombiana. It was contested by the champions of the 2019 Categoría Primera A season from 8 to 11 September 2020. ...

References

1990 births Footballers from Cali Living people 21st-century Colombian sportsmen Men's association football central defenders Colombian men's footballers Deportivo Cali footballers Córdoba F.C. players Atlético de la Sabana footballers Deportivo Pasto footballers Colorado Rapids players Atlético Bucaramanga footballers Club Brugge KV players K.V. Mechelen players Atlético Junior footballers Cienciano footballers Categoría Primera A players Categoría Primera B players USL Championship players Major League Soccer players Belgian Pro League players Challenger Pro League players Peruvian Primera División players Colombian expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States Colombian expatriate sportspeople in the United States Expatriate men's footballers in Belgium Colombian expatriate sportspeople in Belgium Expatriate men's footballers in Peru Colombian expatriate sportspeople in Peru {{Colombia-footy-defender-stub