Liga MX’s ‘Big 3’ in capital coming up small
Cementeros continue slow collapse in capital
Cruz Azul has won two pieces of hardware already this season but their performance in the league has been an unmitigated disaster. And that means their Liga MX title drought will extend beyond 22 years.
The Cementeros hoisted the pre-season SuperCopa MX trophy then won the inaugural Leagues Cup competition pitting MLS and Liga MX teams. But it is the 3-7-4 league record that is most troubling.
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Since firing Pedro Caixinha on Sept. 2, Cruz Azul has suffered through one front office fiasco after another. The club was emerging from painful litigation and former team executives unceremoniously re-inserted themselves. General manager Ricardo Peláez resigned in a huff and new coach Robert Siboldi started his term under a cloud.
The team did not respond well to Siboldi’s management, producing three dismal draws and a loss heading into the Clásico Joven against América on Oct. 5. The Cementeros exploded for five goals against the hated Aguilas, winning 5-2 and reviving dreams of a playoff berth. That feeling did not last as Cruz Azul followed up that impressive win with a 3-2 home loss to Morelia.
This Saturday, the Cementeros pay a visit to the fifth-place Tigres who are 3-2-1 at home and are on a three-game win streak. Cruz Azul must find a way to claim all 3 points to maintain any playoff hopes they might still hold.
La Máquina has only 16 points from 14 games, buried in 13th place with only three games remaining after tonight. And Cruz Azul has yet to serve its bye. That comes on Matchday 17.
All the more reason that anything less than 3 points against the Tigres dooms them to another lost season.