Fansided

Liga MX: Club Tijuana vs Pachuca Preview

By Tom Freeman-Eves

TIJUANA, MEXICO - AUGUST 25: Players from Tijuana enter the field during the seventh round match between Tijuana and Pachuca as part of the Torneo Apertura 2017 Liga MX at Caliente Stadium on August 25, 2017 in Tijuana, Mexico. (Photo by Gonzalo Gonzalez/Jam Media/Getty Images)
TIJUANA, MEXICO - AUGUST 25: Players from Tijuana enter the field during the seventh round match between Tijuana and Pachuca as part of the Torneo Apertura 2017 Liga MX at Caliente Stadium on August 25, 2017 in Tijuana, Mexico. (Photo by Gonzalo Gonzalez/Jam Media/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

Xolos attempt to get a winning streak going as they take on sudden Liguilla contenders,  Pachuca.

Club Tijuana have finally managed their first win on the road as they overcame Atlas 1 – 0 in Guadalajara on match day 8. But, despite the positive result, Xolos were only able to manage 37% possession and 7 shots total; Atlas amassed 21 over the course of the 90 minutes.

More from Viva Liga MX

However, the possession and shots don’t tell the full story and the real positive though comes at the back as Xolos looked to sure up some of the problems which have been arising so far this season. Whilst there were still gaps out wide when they were out of possession, they looked much tighter in the centre of defence and were effective in denying Atlas space in the box. In fact, SofaScore awarded their highest match ratings to three of Xolos’ defensive players; Luis Fuentes (1st), Manuel Lajud (2nd) and Julián Velázquez (=3rd with Ignacio Rivero).

This new-found defensive solidity led to several poor-quality shots from Los Rojinegros from outside the box. In the end, only 3 of their shots were on target, all of which were saved by a revitalised looking Manuel Lajud.

This is all a huge positive sign as Xolos prepare to take on a Pachuca side who’ve struggled to find the net themselves this season, only managing 11 goals over the 8 rounds. However, this will be a stern test as Los Tuzos are currently on an unbeaten run in the league which stretches back to match day 3 when they were overcome by Club América 3 – 1. This run of games has included impressive draws away at Santos and Pumas, along with a 3 – 1 victory away to Chivas and a 1 – 1 draw last weekend as they hosted Tigres.

It’s difficult to say for sure how Pachuca will line up this weekend as they’ve used three different formations in their last three games, most recently a 4-3-3 against Tigres. However, given the success that Atlas found in the midfield also using a 4-3-3, it’s likely that Pachuca will opt for this formation again this week. The idea will be to attempt to overrun Xolos with star player Víctor Guzmán likely to play a key role if they are to have any success.

From a Club Tijuana perspective, they’ll be hoping that they can maintain momentum in defence and that fortress Estadio Caliente will once again guarantee at least a point this weekend!

Home/Club Tijuana