Liga MX: América, Rayados, Chivas move closer to Copa MX knockout stage
América, Monterrey and Guadalajara all moved closer to reaching the knockout rounds of the Copa MX Tuesday night, while defending champion Necaxa wasted an opportunity to clinch a spot in the Round of 16.
Veracruz 0, América 3
The Águilas put on a dominating first half show then coasted to victory at turmoil-ridden Veracruz. Cecilio Domínguez demonstrated he is fully fit, scoring twice, while Henry Martín opened the scoring in minute 27.
América’s teen sensation cut open the Tiburones defense on three occasions but missed the net each time. Young fullback Jorge Sánchez rampaged up and down the left flank, letting coach Miguel Herrera know that he is ready for more minutes in Liga MX play.
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The bigger story for Veracruz was the resignation of coach Memo Vázquez for unspecified reasons. Multiple reports suggest team owner Fidel Kuri is behind on payments to players and coaches but Vázquez did not mention that in his resignation letter.
The Tiburones are facing relegation again this season and are in 13th place in the Liga MX standings and have lost all three Copa matches this season. América leads Group 7 with 7 points, trailed by Sinaloa with 4.
Guadalajara 1, Oaxaca 0
The Chivas momentarily quieted the turbulence surrounding club headquarters with an unimpressive 1-0 win over the visiting Alebrijes in Group 8 action. Javier “El Chofis” López got the game-winner in the first half in close, meeting a lovely cross from Ángel Sepúlveda who had escaped down the right flank.
Although the victory is no doubt a sigh of relief, the Chivas played the entire second half as if they were the second-division club trying to rescue an upset of a powerhouse team. Guadalajara sat back on defense, ceded possession to Oaxaca and appeared nervous, often punting the ball clear instead of trying to move forward with the ball at their feet. Not a convincing display.
The clear star of the match was Alebrijes goalie Luis Robles who made several sparkling saves to keep Oaxaca in the match during a strong first-half performance by Guadalajara.
The Chivas have 7 points to top their group, followed by Morelia with 3 and the Alebrijes have 1 point.
Tampico Madero 3, Necaxa 1
The second-division Jaibas sent their fans into a frenzy with a delightful performance against a second-string Necaxa line-up. Javier “Chuletita” Orozco scored twice for Tampico Madero and Eduardo Aguirre put the Jaibas ahead in minute 41.
The only good thing to come out of this game for Necaxa is that the starters will be well-rested for Saturday’s home game vs Puebla. Coach Marcelo Michel only started one player who had started a Liga MX match – José Medina, and he only started last Friday vs Morelia because Felipe Gallegos was on a red-card suspension.
The young Rayos revealed that Coach Michel does not have much of a bench to rely on, as they looked absolutely terrible. The defense lacked discipline and awareness, often losing players drifting into scoring position; in attack, there was too much overdribbling, plenty of turnovers and an incredible display of poor passing.
Even so, Cup holders Necaxa had a chance to tie in minute 56 when “El Gullit” Peña hopped on to a rebound just right of net but somehow fired wide left. Tampico Madero took its next possession right down the field, twisted the Rayos defense in knots then found Orozco free behind the defense and “Chuletita” promptly made it 3-1 for the Jaibas.
Necaxa leads Group 4 with 6 points while Tampico Madero and the Pumas trail with 3 points each.
Puebla 1, Monterrey 1
Rayados rookie Daniel Lajud scored in minute 23 to cap a solid first-half for Monterrey, but then the visitors were forced to scramble to preserve a point after Alexis Parra was sent off in minute 76.
Puebla’s Cristián Palacios knocked home the equalizer in minute 85 and the sparse crowd in Estadio Cuauhtémoc erupted into cheers. Monterrey had sent on first-team forwards Dorlan Pabón and Avilés Hurtado in an effort to stretch the lead, but were forced to chase the ball and rely on speedy counterattacks that failed to produce the insurance goal.
Monterrey now has 7 points in Group 1, Puebla trails with 4 and Mérida is in last place with 0 points.
León 2, Zacatecas 1
Mauro Boselli scored a brace for the Esmeraldas and the home team staved off a plucky second-division rival, playing a man down for the final half hour after Walter González was shown a red card.
The Mineros held their own throughout a scoreless – but entertaining – first half. Twenty seconds into the second half, Zacatecas was awarded a penalty but León keeper William Yarbrough denied Guillermo Martínez with a diving save to his left.
Walter González then saw his point-blank shot blocked at the goal line in minute 55 and was ejected for arguing 4 minutes later after the ref did not award a clear penalty.
In minute 68, Juan José Calero wiggled free as he dribbled toward the middle of the pitch, then chipped into the box where Boselli powered home a header to give León a 1-0 lead. Boselli added his second in minute 80 and it appeared that the Esmeraldas would coast to victory.
Sergio Vergara hit the crossbar in minute 74 for Zacatecas but with four minutes remaining, the Mineros found a spark of hope when Martínez atoned for his penalty kick failure with a spectacular leaping volley off a corner kick to narrow the deficit to 2-1.
León held on for the win and now has 6 points in Group 3 while Querétaro and Zacatecas each have 3.