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Mexican Primera Round-Up: The Return of Chivas And America
The Jornada 10 showcased a double Derby which resulted in victories for Mexico’s two historic clubs, Chivas and América, over their city rivals Atlas and Cruz Azul. Also, another victorious display for Atlante which handed Pumas a third straight defeat.
Sep 29, 2008 12:38:18 AM
Saturday, 27 September, 2008
Jaguares 3 - 1 Tecos
San Luis 1 - 1 Puebla
Pachuca 2 - 1 Monterrey
Tigres 0 - 1 Indios
Atlas 0 - 1 Chivas
Atlante 2 - 0 Pumas
Sunday, 28 September, 2008
Toluca 2 - 1 Santos
Morelia 3 - 1 Necaxa
América 2 - 0 Cruz Azul
Jaguares 1 - 3 Tecos
The Tecos earned a surprising 3-1 away victory in Chiapas, after home side Jaguares failed to capitalize on their dominance and ball possession.
After an upbeat start by Jaguares, Tecos had their first opportunity in the 16 minute when veteran forward Rodrigo “Pony” Ruiz opened up the score on a free kick. Jaguares would not let their dominance slip away fruitless, they continued to put pressure up top when Tecos captain Juan Carlos Leaño tripped “Danilinho” in the box for a penalty, which Adolfo "Bofo" Bautista converted in the 24 minute for the 1-1 tie.
Jaguares continued to dominate and pressure the Tecos goal up to the middle of the second half. In the 77 minute, Tecos coach Miguel Herrera gave the nod to 18-year old Arnhold Rivas, who celebrated his first Tri call-up with two goals in the 77 and 80 minutes for the definitive 3-1 Tecos lead.
With this victory, Tecos has 15 points and is only a point behind leaders Pumas in Group Two, while Jaguares continue at the bottom of Group Three and classification with 8 points.
San Luis 1 - 1 Puebla
Mario Carillo’s Puebla continues to sum points after they earned a valuable away draw against San Luis. The “camoteros” played intelligently and resorted to defend for most of the game, which prevented San Luis from developing their imposing style.
In the 25 minute Puebla opened the score with a strike by Horacio Peralta. Their joy was brief, because in the 37 minute Rodolfo Salinas tied up the score after connecting a perfectly placed shot off an Omar Monjaraz pass.
With this result, the “camoteros” earned their second straight draw and have 9 points at the bottom of Group One. While San Luis continues at the top of classification and Group Three with 20 points.
Pachuca 2 - 1 Monterrey
After an unconventional start to the campaign, the “Tuzos” have bounced back with two straight victories and a playing style reminiscent of past Pachuca squads.
They faced an unfamiliar Monterrey team which continues to suffer at the bottom half and who were lucky that Pachuca’s shooting was off in the first half, or the score would have been as scandalous as last week’s 4-0 defeat to Morelia.
Under the watchful eye of Mexico boss Sven-Goran Eriksson in the stands, Pachuca defender Leobardo López opened up the score in the 39 minute with a powerful header. Three minutes into the second half, defender Fausto Pinto scored on his own goal and helped Monterrey draw level.
In the 66 minute, Monterrey’s William Paredes made a mistake by pushing Paul Aguilar in the box and Bruno Marioni shot a rocket from the penalty spot for the final 2-1.
With this Group One result, the “Tuzos” entersthe fray for the second spot of qualification with 11 points and are stepping on Monterrey’s heels who have 12 points.
Tigres 0 - 1 Indios
The Indios returned to victory and brought an end to a streak of two losses by defeating Tigres by the minimal margin.
Tigres was simply not able to decipher the organized formation of Indios and at times appeared desperate, which resulted in a missed penalty shot by Lucas Lobos and an unnecessary Blas Pérez expulsion.
In the 87 minute, Indios captain Edwin Santibáñez scored the winning goal of the match after his shot from inside the box left Tigres goalkeeper Óscar Pérez without a chance.
With this defeat Tigres remains in the second spot of Group Three with 14 points but has Toluca on their heels. In Group One Indios has 10 points and has entered the battle for the second spot.
Atlas 0 - 1 Chivas
The “Clasico Tapatío” was a typical derby, not characterized by good football but by a hard-fought encounter that was entertaining for the full 90 minutes. On this occasion, Chivas took home the victory and bragging rights in the city of Guadalajara while extending their territorial dominance over Atlas to 5 consecutive matches.
Since the start of the match both teams demonstrated an initiative to get the early lead, demonstrating their offensive tendencies with good passing and dynamic attack. The similar tactical formation and style typical of the Guadalajara sides resulted in back and forth action, but with few scoring opportunities due to the hard midfield battle and neutralization of each others attack.
Chivas would have the first clear chance of the match in the 36 minute when an Omar Arellano shot beat Atlas goalkeeper Jorge Bava, but was rejected by the post.
The “Rojinegros” would not stay behind and quickly responded with efforts by Darío Botinelli and Ariel Bogado, which forced Chivas goalkeeper Victor Hernández to impress on his debut.
With the start of the second half Chivas began to demonstrate more control of the match, with more attacking options which pushed Atlas to their own defensive half.
In the 55 minute, Chivas captain Ramon Morales and Omar Arellano orchestrated a brilliant give-and-go combination which opened the Atlas defense. This led to a dangerous Morales cross to an unmarked Xavier Baez, whose shot was not the best but nonetheless gave Chivas the lead in the derby.
In search of the equalizer, Atlas took over the action for the remainder of the match. The “Rojinegros” demonstrated signs of reaction with a continuous attack but to no avail against a resolute Chivas defense which quickly disposed of any Atlas advances.
In the final minutes Atlas was completely dedicated to the attack, but without any clear scoring options or ideas against a completely defensive Chivas team.
Mexico’s most historic club took home the victory in this edition of the “Clasico Tapatío” and earned a great deal of confidence, which will relieve some of the pressure they faced in the past few weeks from their president and faithful.
In an interesting side note, Chivas captain Ramon Morales was the oldest player on the field with 33 years and when he was substituted both teams fielded players under the age of 30.
With the defeat, Atlas stays at 11 points but falls to the fourth spot in Group Three, while Chivas reach 13 points and close the gap in Group Two.
Atlante 2 - 0 Pumas
The impressive “Potros” capitalized on their good form and consolidated themselves in the second spot of overall classification with a 2-0 victory over Pumas in Cancún.
Pumas suffered their second consecutive defeat and demonstrated serious errors in defense which home side Atlante took full advantage of.
The first goal came in the 24 minute off a powerful Giancarlo Maldonado free kick which beat a diving Pumas goalkeeper Sergio Bernal. In the 85 minute, Luis Gabriel Rey put one passed Bernal for the definitive 2-0.
With this victory Atlante distanced themselves from Santos at the top of Group One with 19 points and are second overall. Pumas continues at the top of Group Two with 16 points but will arrive in a negative run to next week’s derby against América.
Toluca 2 - 1 Santos
The “Diablos” finally won after three consecutive draws when they defeated Santos in a highly entertaining encounter which featured impressive saves from both goalkeepers.
This victory is pure oxygen to under-fire Toluca boss Manuel de la Torre, whose team was finally able to reflect their dominance on the field on the scoreboard. On the other side, Santos suffered their second defeat of the week and are far from the level that earned them the championship last season.
The goals for the Toluca victory were scored by Héctor Mancilla in the 27 minute and youngster Néstor Calderón in the 50’, while Ecuadorian Christian Benítez scored the only goal for Santos in the 31 minute.
The victory moves Toluca to the third spot of Group Three with 13 points and in pursuit of qualification. Santos remains in the second spot of Group One also with 13 points
Morelia 3 - 1 Necaxa
The “Monarcas” demonstrated that their thrashing of Monterrey last week was not an isolated incident by handing Necaxa a 3-1 defeat and the possible firing of their coach.
Everything was going well for the “Hidrorayos” when in the 47 minute they went up in the score with a Marvin de la Cruz header.
The lead would not last, in the 62 minute Peruvian Andrés Mendoza drew the score level and two minutes later gave Morelia the lead with his second goal of the night. To make matters worse for Necaxa and their coach Salvador Reyes, in the 86 minute Morelia youngster Elías Hernández sealed the deal and made it 3-1.
Morelia has turned their campaign around with their second straight victory and with 14 points are in a position to fight for qualification in Group Two. Necaxa has not won since the third week and with 8 points are penultimate in classification and Group Three.
América 2 - 0 Cruz Azul
The “Aguilas” closed week 10 action with a 2-0 victory in the “Clásico Joven” over Cruz Azul, with a brilliant return to action by Paraguayan forward Salvador Cabañas.
In the 6 minute, a long pass from the America defense was technically chest trapped by Cabañas and controlled in the Cruz Azul box which he shot by goalkeeper Yosgart Gutierrez for the early “Aguila” lead.
The “Cementeros” would have their first important chance ten minutes later when a solitary César Villaluz appeared in front of goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa, but his shot went high over the América goal.
Salvador Cabañas would earn his second of the night in the 36 minute, when he took advantage of a bad “Cementero” defense on a free kick and headed it in for the definitive 2-0 score.
The second half saw a parity in scoring options, with Cruz Azul introducing offensive players Miguel Sabah and Marcelo Carrusca. The closest they got to getting on the scoresheet was at the 90 minute mark, when Carrusca was tripped-up inside the box by América defender Óscar Rojas, but no call was made.
With the final result, América not only continues their unbeaten streak to 13 matches against Cruz Azul, but more importantly recovers morale and goalscoarer Salvador Cabañas.
The “Aguilas” continue at the bottom of Group Two with 12 points, but have shortened the distance with second place Cruz Azul who have 15 points.
César García covers México for Goal.com.
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