Gustavo Lema, 56, became the first manager in 2025 to face the sack as the Pumas man was released of his duties after a year in charge of the club.
Joining in April 2023, Lema spent the first eight months as the assistant manager to the current Toluca head coach, Antonio Mohamed, but was promoted in December of the same year for his first official managerial role.
Prior to Los Auriazules, he spent three years as the assistant manager with Monterrey before heading to Spain for a six-month stint with La Liga side Celta Vigo.
Pumas announced the decision on Wednesday evening after they suffered a 4-2 loss to Tijuana in the Clausura. A result which initially looked even worse when Los Xolos netted four goals in the first half, but Ignacio Pussetto and Santiago Torres provided consolation goals. Losing to Tijuana stretched their losing streak to three games, suffering losses to Pachuca and Club America.
The club find themselves outside of the Liguilla spots, on 11 points, level with Mazatlán and Chivas but a worse goal difference putting them in 12th place.
Question marks around Lema's tenure rose when Pumas became the first Mexican side to lose to a Canadian club in the CONCACAF Champions Cup after a 2-1 loss against Cavalry FC, but were able to recover in the second leg and qualify for the next round.
Pumas' poor start to the Clausura was anticipated by many following the exit of César Huerta, who had nine goal contributions during the Apertura. The 24-year-old packed his bags for Europe,
with a move to Anderlecht in the Belgian First Division
At the same time as making the announcement, they confirmed that youth team manager Raúl Alpízar will take over first team duties until a formal replacement for Lema is found.
Next up for Pumas will be the chance to host Chivas on Saturday night at the Estadio Universitario, aiming to climb back into the playoff positions.
Was it the right decision to sack Gustavo Lema? Let us know!