Liga MX: Veracruz hopes to ride wave of momentum against Leon
After an impressive outing against Santos Laguna, Veracruz comes up against a flailing Leon club.
Los Tiburones have a solid opportunity to jump Leon in the table when the two clubs face off in Jornada 11. Despite the worst goals conceded record in Liga MX, Veracruz has been playing much better as of late. Leon has lost their last three league matches, the worst of which was their last loss.
Last Match
Veracruz: D @ Santos 1-1
Though we expected the game to be more competitive than the records indicated, not many would have predicted Veracruz to have the better of the play and come away with a draw on the road. Los Tiburones gave up the first goal on a beauty of a pass and shot when Jonathan Rodriguez finished a Brian Lozano pass. Veracruz kept at it though and after Santos keeper Jonathan Orozco made some great saves, Cristian Menendez gave him no chance with a gorgeous backheel goal, sealing a draw and a point.
Leon: L v Lobos 0-1
A weird match that was suspended in the 71st minute for heavy rain, Leon couldn’t find their way to a victory. When Leo Ramos scored for Lobos with two minutes left, they wouldn’t even come away with one point. It was just Lobos BUAP’s second win and seventh goal in this Apertura. At this point, Leon is just trying to stop themselves from falling to complete pieces. Forget about Liguilla.
Predicted Lineups
Veracruz: 4-2-3-1
Gallese
Paganoni – Noya – Rivas – Mares
Cartagena – Martinez
Luna – Murillo – Chavez
Menendez
Menendez leads the Veracruz attack and Friday will be no different. He’ll be the focal point for Los Tiburones but they’ll certainly hope that Diego Chavez and Adrian Luna step up against a weaker opponent like Leon. I’d like to see Jefferson Murillo take the spot of Ronaldo Prieto. Prieto has been very mediocre over the last few matches and Murillo provided the assist on Menendez’s goal last week, showing his ability.
Leon: 4-2-3-1
Cota
Navarro – Mosquera – Tesillo – Cornejo
Aquino- Rodriguez
Cerato – Montes – Moreno
Boselli
Leon tried to switch things up a little bit with Yairo Moreno starting on the bench against Lobos BUAP. They won’t do that again in this match. They can’t afford to roll out players they are curious about over more proven, trusted players. The back four defensemen will be tested by Menendez and Cota will need to be ready. Do we see William Yarbrough in goal at some point? Cota has been underwhelming in the clubs 10 matches. None of that matters if they can’t score, though. Luis Montes and Mauro Boselli has work to do and a matchup with the leakiest defense in the league could provide an opportunity for confidence building.
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Key Players
Veracruz: Adrian Luna played well in the Santos draw and the loss against Toluca. If he continues to play well, Veracruz will like their chances. Though he isn’t the main goal scorer, Veracruz is at it’s best when he is.
Leon: Luis Montes, though he is aging, is still Leon’s best player. Boselli is the nomimal goal-scorer but Montes will need to be the guy that gets everything going and opens up opportunities.
Prediction
I think Veracruz is starting to find their groove. I think Leon is aging to quickly to pull out of their death spiral, yet. If you can’t beat Lobos, you’re going to have a bad time. Veracruz is much better than Lobos. Cristian Menendez will be a handful and the continued solid play of Adrian Luna will prove too much for Leon, but they’ll do just enough to stay about Los Tiburones in the table.