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Mexican Primera Weekend Preview: Jornada 10
All eyes are turned to the double derby action this weekend when in-form Cruz Azul visit an América in crisis, and the resurgent Atlas host the highly criticized Chivas.
Sep 26, 2008 11:18:29 AM
The Jornada 10 of the Torneo Apertura 2008 features two highly contested regional derbies which include teams that are at varying wavelengths and experiencing different fortunes so far this season. The Guadalajara derby between the oldest clubs Atlas and Chivas, and the capital derby of México City between América and Cruz Azul.
The fixtures kick-off on Saturday with the Group One battle between Pachuca and Monterrey, Pumas and Atlante fight it out for the second spot in Cancún, but the honors belong to the ‘Clásico Tapatío’ at estadio Jalisco between Atlas and Chivas. On Sunday, Santos hope to take advantage of the misfortunes of Toluca, and América hosts Cruz Azul at the Azteca in another edition of the ‘Clásico Joven’ to close week 10 action.
Saturday, 27 September, 2008 (home teams listed first, all times local)
17:00 Jaguares - Tecos
17:00 San Luis - Puebla
19:00 Pachuca - Monterrey
19:00 Tigres - Indios
20:45 Atlas - Chivas
21:00 Atlante - Pumas
Sunday, 28 September, 2008
12:00 Toluca - Santos
12:00 Morelia - Necaxa
17:00 América - Cruz Azul
Jaguares - Tecos
The Chiapas side has only one home victory this season and in their last encounter were defeated by Chivas, displaying a poor performance. They currently occupy the penultimate position and boss Sergio Almaguer must put pressure on his players before the situation further gets out of control.
Tecos did not participate last weekend due to the postponement of their match against Pachuca for weather reasons. Coach Miguel Herrera should make the most of two weeks of uninterrupted work, but will suffer the absences of goalkeeper Jesús Corona due to illness and the suspended Jorge Zamogilny.
Both squads have offensive-minded philosophies and talented forwards which should make this encounter attractive and with a lot of attacking options.
San Luis - Puebla
The gladiators head into this match with the objective to continue as superlider and demonstrate that they are the most consistent team this season. Coach Raúl Arias will serve his second match of suspension, but the team should not experience many changes due to their impressive form in league and Copa Sudamericana.
Mario Carrillo will hope to see an improved functionality in his team after a full week of work. Puebla did not take full advantage of their last home against Tigres and are in desperate need for points to get out of the bottom of the table.
The dilemma for Puebla is if they should play for the draw and take home a point, or go all out for the victory and risk being attacked by an effective San Luis offense.
Pachuca - Monterrey
The ‘Tuzos’ of Pachuca head into this match well rested after their Jornada 9 match was postponed and with revived spirits for the recent turnaround of their campaign. Pachuca has everything in their favor, they play at home, Bruno Marioni is completely recovered, and most important have recuperated confidence.
On the other hand, the ‘Rayados’ of Monterrey suffered a horrible home defeat to Morelia last weekend and will want to take out their anger on Pachuca. The ‘Rayados’ have the capacity and talent to revert their situation, but if they act too hastily may end up paying for it at the hands of Pachuca which plays very good football.
An interesting and attractive match due to the quality of the squads, and because the outcome plays an important role in their playoff hopes since they are both in Group 1.
Tigres - Indios
Since their 3-1 away victory over América, Tigres has not maintained a consistent and efficient style of play which has resulted in a home loss to Tecos and draw to Puebla. Coach Manuel Lapuente will count with a full squad, but his main worry should be getting the ball in the back of the net which is the main reason for the bad results.
After what appeared to be an awakening by Indios a few weeks back with an unbeaten streak of three matches, their reality caught up to them and have suffered two straight losses due to defensive mistakes. The continuity of bad results has thrown them back to the bottom of classification and made them primary candidates for relegation.
On paper, this match presents Tigres with an opportunity to end their scoring woes against the visiting Indios who have a very complicated outlook in Primera.
Atlas - Chivas
The highlight and attention-grabber of the week is the Guadalajara derby, better known as the ‘ Clásico Tapatío’ to be played at Jalisco stadium and which has been celebrated since 1916 by Mexico’s oldest clubs.
Chivas is fresh off a minimal victory over Jaguares last weekend which provided a sense of tranquility to their irregular and bad campaign. They have yet to convince their faithful and after the midweek draw in the Copa Sudamericana against the Atlético Paranaense ‘B’ team, they leave a lot to be desired. Mexico’s most historic club has been heavily criticized all season-long, but a derby is a separate match and a victory can easily relieve all pressure and end a bad streak.
The ‘Rojinegros’ of Atlas head into this derby with the better numbers and overall team functionality, with two consecutive victories that has resulted in a promising turnaround in the season. They have the league’s top goalscoarer Ariel Bogado, in their ranks and hope to use their positive state of mind to earn the victory and get closer to playoff qualification. The ‘Zorros’ will also be motivated to end two years of defeats to Chivas.
The current form of both clubs heading into the derby indicate that Atlas will propose the match and best scoring chances against an overly-pressured Chivas. Still, derby matches are unpredictable and there is more at stake than the three points, the only guarantee is a hard-fought and entertaining match between city rivals.
Atlante - Pumas
This encounter proves to be one of the most attractive matches of the week, since both teams are in great form, leaders of their respective groups, and Pumas has been unable to defeat Atlante in three years.
Both sides will play for the victory because they are tied with 16 points in the second and third spots of classification, and they both want complete control of the second spot.
The match promises to be a good show with many attacking opportunities and tactics, due to the characteristics of the coaches.
While Pumas wants to return to victory after their defeat last weekend, it will not be easy since Atlante boasts an undefeated home record and only one defeat in the season.
Toluca - Santos
It has been six weeks since the last Toluca win, a situation which has the continuity of coach Manuel de la Torre in jeopardy and has resulted in a mediocre campaign. They are in urgent need of a victory to bring calm to their camp, but the participation of Antonio Naelson ‘Sinha’ is in doubt, after suffering an injury setback midweek with El Tri.
Despite their good numbers in Group One, Santos has not had a consistent campaign. They have three matches without winning and have failed to display the impressive level that earned them the title last season. Santos kept the same players from last year, but playmaker Daniel Ludueña is far from his best playing level.
The match should be contested in midfield since both squads emphasize ball possession, but Toluca’s urgency for points may result in attacking facilities for the lethal Santos strikers.
Morelia - Necaxa
The overall season for Morelia has been irregular and filled with draws, but after last weekend’s 4-0 victory over Monterrey, they will try to demonstrate that the result against ‘Rayados’ was not an isolated incident. With another inspired performance by forward Hugo Droguett, Monarcas may find themselves with consecutive victories.
Necaxa will have to forget the regrettable referee decisions from their last match against Toluca, which demonstrated that some bad results are not entirely their fault. Coach Salvador Reyes is suspended for protesting bad calls after their previous match and another unfavorable result may leave him unemployed.
The participation of Necaxa’s Hugo Rodallega and Morelia’s Hugo Droguettb will play an important factor to determine who comes out victorious from this mid-table match.
América - Cruz Azul
The Jornada 10 ends in good style with the ‘Clásico Joven’ between México City teams America and Cruz Azul at the estadio Azteca.
Last time they faced in the Torneo Clausura 2008, both teams were in similar situations in the table as in the present campaign. On that occasion, Cruz Azul was poised to make the most out of America’s misery, but the match ended in a 1-1 draw and a brawl.
Cruz Azul holds a notable lead over the ‘Aguilas’ in points, position and more importantly overall team performance. It appears that the ‘Cementeros’ have everything in their favor to finally defeat America after 13 official matches without tasting victory against their city rivals. They must continue to deal with the vital absence of injured goalkeeper Yosgart Gutiérrez, and again rely on young goalkeeper Alfonso Blanco.
America’s crisis is not new, it has dragged with them since last season and continues after their home loss last week against Atlante and their cellar position in Group Two. Coach Ramón Díaz has dealt with many injuries and suspensions, and has resorted to fielding a different formation in every match in search of the right formula for victory. It is yet to be determined if tinkering with the formation has affected the player understanding on the pitch, but Díaz will not stop until he fields the team which returns America to the top.
Cruz Azul will have the dominance and control of the match along with playing the better football, but the match as a whole will suffer from America’s necessity for a positive result at any cost, because a derby victory could bring an end to their crisis.
César García covers México for Goal.com.
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