Liga MX Review: América Edge Past Chivas in the Derby

Liga MX action returned this weekend after the international break, with fans able to enjoy El Clásico de Clásicos along with other exciting match-ups such as Atlas vs Pachuca and Toluca vs Tijuana in a 3rd vs 4th place battle.

Friday 13th September 2024

Puebla 2 vs 1 Querétaro
Atlas 2 vs 0 Pachuca
Juárez 1 vs 0 Mazatlán
Tigres 1 vs 0 San Luís
Necaxa 2 vs 0 Pumas

Another miserable result for Los Gallos who remain at the foot of the Liga MX table with a seventh loss in eight games. The hosts opened the scoring moments before the half time break as Gustavo Ferrareis gave Puebla the lead going into the break. Just after the hour mark and Querétaro were able to respond through Juan Robles, but a familiar fate was sealed in the 77th minute when Santiago Ormeno converted a spot kick for the hosts.

Pachuca suffered a similar fate during their visit to the Estadio Jalisco with a 2-0 loss to Atlas. A fourth straight game without victory for Los Tuzos after leaking two goals in the opening 16 minutes of the game. Any attempt at a comeback was squashed when Arturo Gonzalez was handed a straight red card, becoming the third player in three games to be sent off for Pachuca.

On the Mexico/ US border, Juárez sealed their first win of the season with a narrow 1-0 victory against Mazatlán. The decisive moment came just after half time when Oscar Ortega netted for the home side, but they would be made to fight for the points after defender Jose Garcia received a red card during the celebrations for Ortega's goal.

More drama ensued as Tigres scored their winner in the 98th minute through Fernando Gorriaran. The home side thought they took the lead within 35 seconds of the game when Uriel Antuna headed home for what looked to be his first goal for the club since moving from Cruz Azul however his goal was ruled offside. Juan Brunetta was later given a straight red card for a late tackle and with the game destined for a goalless draw as San Luís were unable to capitalise, Tigres grabbed all three points from a Gorriaran strike late into added time.

The final game of the night saw Necaxa score two goals in 13 minutes to climb above Pumas in the table. After failing to keep hold of a 2-0 lead last week against Santos Laguna, Eduardo Fentanes' side learned their lesson and were able to keep hold of the three points as Pumas suffer a third consecutive league defeat.

Saturday 14th September 2023

Toluca 4 vs 0 Tijuana
Club América 1 vs 0 Chivas
León 1 vs 2 Cruz Azul
Santos Laguna 0 vs 2 Monterrey

Los Diablos Rojos ran riot against fellow playoff contenders Tijuana to kickstart the Saturday action. Jesus Angulo opened the scoring to give the home side a 1-0 lead going into the break, but goals from Marcel Ruiz, a second from Angulo and a stoppage time goal from Paulinho crowned a perfect performance from Toluca. The commanding result means that they jump up into 2nd place, two points off of Cruz Azul.

Mexico later paused with the two giants heading head-to-head in the capital. Both sides have had poor starts to the campaign, but a win in this fixture was the perfect opportunity to kick-start their seasons. Whilst both teams failed to capitalise on their chances, the all-important moment came in the first half when Ramon Juarez was able to smash home from a sloppy attempt to clear a corner from Chivas. Beyond the bragging rights, the three points move América into 12th place, one point off the playoffs.

Moving from the capital to the north, Cruz Azul maintained its unbeaten start to the season with a comeback win over León. Jhonder Cadíz gave the home side a shock lead but Lorenzo Farelli's equaliser before half time restored expectations. Whilst La Maquina were expected to comfortably win the game in the second half, the winner came seven minutes from time as Rodolfo Rotondi netted for the visitors to ensured that Azul would remain at the top of the table.

The final game of the weekend saw Los Rayados comfortably beat a Santos Laguna side that remains just one win from eight. Brandon Vazquez opened the scoring within the first four minutes but Monterrey would need to wait until the 95th minute to seal the win when Germán Berterame netted. The result moves the club into 4th place, just one point off city rivals Tigres and Toluca.

Which team impressed you the most this weekend? Let us know!