After suffering their second defeat of the competition, a 3-1 loss to Real Madrid, means that Pachuca have waved goodbye to their chances of qualifying for the next round of the FIFA Club World Cup.
Despite Real Madrid going down to ten men early in the match after Raúl Asencio was sent off, goals from Jude Bellingham, Arda Güler and Federico Valverde topped off an important win for the Spanish side, showing their individual and collective superiority to secure the three points.
Los Tuzos offered some promising offensive moments, especially in the first half, with Kennedy connecting well with Salomón Rondón to unlock the Spanish back line, but the only goal against Los Blancos came from Elías Montiel's deflected strike from outside the box, wrong-footing Thibaut Courtois.
Pachuca’s dream began on Wednesday, 18 June, but ended on a bitter note, as they opened the tournament with a 2-1 loss against RB Salzburg, which made their path to the Round of 16 increasingly difficult.
After two solid performances under new head coach Jaime Lozano, Pachuca ended up paying for their own defensive errors, which cost them on the scoreboard and left them with zero points heading into the third and final matchday.
Pachuca suffered a major setback before the start of the competition, losing one of its key players, Oussama Idrissi, who was ruled out through injury.
The absence of such an essential player was clearly felt, as he had been one of the most influential figures in the squad, recording 7 goals and 13 assists in 40 matches across all club competitions. However, it will be crucial to have him back for the upcoming Apertura, as Jaime Lozano considers him a fundamental part of the team.
The Mexican side leaves with a respectable impression and will close out their Club World Cup participation on Thursday, 26 June at 7:00 p.m. (CST) against Al Hilal.
Once again at the Club World Cup, 19-year-old Elías Montiel was a key player for Pachuca, scoring the team’s only goal against Real Madrid whilst finishing the game with a 94% pass completion. Whilst it's the end of the road for Los Tuzos, fans will be excited about seeing this young central midfielder grow as he leads them into the upcoming Liga MX Apertura.
The team from Hidalgo will kick off their domestic season on Sunday, 13 June at home against fellow Club World Cup participants, Monterrey, at 5:00 p.m. (CST).
Lozano will aim to end the international tournament on a high note and begin preparing the squad for a new Liga MX campaign in which Pachuca carries high expectations and hopes to go far, hoping to improve on their previous run, where they were eliminated in the quarterfinals.
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