Friday nights’ clash against Rayados de Necaxa was no easy task..
When Morelia was getting ready to face-off against a strong Necaxa team, they knew it wasnt going to be an easy task. They were not favorites to win this match. Morelia had come off a draw with a poor Veracruz squad last week, while Necaxa was coming off a victory against Lobos BUAP.
While this seemed to be a match heavily favored to go Necaxa’s way, the events that followed were a bit of a surprise. The game started off at a quick pace, with both teams going back and forth and Morelia putting up a good fight. As both teams continued to battle, it was Morelia who wasted no time by striking first in the 19th minute, when Diego Valdez Contreras shot a beautiful goal from long distance right in the corner where it was just wide enough to keep away from the Necaxa goalkeeper Hugo Gonzalez. With that goal, Morelia would go up on Necaxa 1-0 to close the half with the lead.
When the second half kicked off, Necaxa came out attacking strong, on a mission to flip the script and gain control of the game. It seemed that Morelia had started off the second half by playing more defensively and the decision came back to haunt them in the 51st minute when the Necaxa attack set up a perfect play, ending with Brian Fernandez finding the back of the net to tie up the game at 1. It didn’t last long. In the 56th minute, Necaxa committed a foul and granted Morelia a free kick. Monarcas wasted no time to capitalize on the opportunity. Defensive captain of the team Gabriel Achilier found an empty hole in the Necaxa defense to jump over everyone and pinpoint the ball in the upper corner of the net to give Morelia the lead.
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The rest of the game consisted of attacks from Necaxa trying to tie the game but a strong Monarcas team held their own to defend any attack and maintain the lead. Morelia looked like a better team, exploiting the holes in the Necaxa defense and finding ways to score and win the game.
This victory over Necaxa should be well enjoyed by Morelia fans. We might see a Morelia team that continues to get better and keep producing wins. If that does occur, then Morelia is in for a fun wild ride in the Liga MX.