Queretaro aims to regain confidence after suffering their first loss of the season over the weekend.
Queretaro finally tasted defeat in the Apertura 2019 when they were humiliated by a rampant Leon, 4-0. Los Gallos Blancos were outplayed at home and the Esmeraldas made them pay for every mistake.
Still, Queretaro has no reason to panic, especially if they can learn from their mistakes. Coach Victor Manuel Vucetich is a fine tactician and he will surely break down his team’s errors and correct them soon enough. The Gallos Blancos sit in third place with 13 points, 1 point back of America and 2 behind leader Santos Laguna.
Queretaro will likely be able to count on the services of forward Ake Loba who missed the Leon game due to injury. He has formed a productive attack along with winger Fabian Castillo and forwards Ayron del Valle and Enrique Triverio.
Gallos captain Luis Romo has been enjoying a transformative season, switching to the holding midfielder spot, but he might have to return to central defense against Veracruz on Tuesday. Veteran defender Jair Pereira was subbed out against Leon due to a minor injury and Romo took his spot.
With the short turnaround, Vucetich might be forced to keep Romo next to Alexis Perez. This could weaken the midfield where Romo has proven to be a splendid box-to-box player. But Vucetich knows he must tighten up the defense as goalkeeper Gil Alcala has been called upon to make 12 saves on shots from inside the box through the first six games of the tournament. That’s the most any Liga MX goalie has made, one more than Santos keeper Jonathan Orozco.
By now, we know Veracruz is the worst team in the league. It has been more than a year – Aug. 25, 2018, to be exact – since the Tiburones picked up their last league win. In fact, Veracruz has gone 32 league games without a victory, posting a 0-10-22 record.
Veracruz is in need of a miracle because if they fail to win against the Gallos Blancos, they will set a world record for most consecutive league games without a win. The Tiburones are tied with England’s Derby County for that dubious record. The Rams went 32 straight games in the Premier League without a win in the 2007-2008 season.
The Tiburones lost their last home game, a 2-1 setback against Atletico San Luis on Friday,
Prediction
I will be shocked if Veracruz somehow ends their winless streak, so let’s be realistic. Queretaro is simply the better team and they should have no trouble grabbing all 3 points.