Pumas Tear Apart Cruz Azul, Take Control Of Group 2

Cruz Azul scored the first goal but Pumas came back with three unanswered and finished with a 3-2 win in Estadio Azul on Saturday.

Apr 5, 2009 12:24:59 PM

More On :  Cruz Azul, Pumas
Ismael Iniguez- Cruz Azul- Pumas (Mexsport)
If Cruz Azul weren't in a crisis before, Saturday may have been the straw that broke their back.

Pumas tore apart a weak Maquina defense in a come-from-behind 3-2 victory in Estadio Azul, a result that put a chasm between the two teams both in the standings and their form.

Cruz Azul scored first as Gerardo Torrado opened the scoring in the 26th minute but Pumas scored three unanswered goals and by the time Cruz Azul got back into the match it was too late to do anything.
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"Mistakes keep costing us but I'm left with a good impression from the second half," Cruz Azul manager Benjamin Galindo said. "We knew the match would get complicated if we gave Pumas the space we gave them, but the team never quit fighting and looking for scoring opportunities so I'm left with a good impression."

For Pumas, it may have seemed difficult entering the affair simply because Cruz Azul had not lost to Pumas in several seasons.

"I believe the most important thing about this was getting the three points," Pumas' David Toledo said. "But now we can talk about the statistics. We hadn't beaten them in eight games and we erased that statistic, although what's more important is taking control of the group."

Cruz Azul's Torrado appeared to have set the wheels in motion for another Azul victory in the 26th minute. On a Cruz Azul set piece, the ball bounced around the area before Alejandro Vela played it outside the penalty area. From some 30 yards out, Torrado lined up a rocket that sailed through the crowd inside the penalty area and smashed into the back of the net.


Despite the impressive goal, however, Cruz Azul gave the lead right back. One minute later, Dante Lopez won a challenge with Cruz Azul 'keeper Alfonso Blanco - who made his season debut and replaced Yosgart Gutierrez in the process. Lopez and Blanco raced to the corner of the penalty area. Blanco jumped and made contact with the ball but it fell to Lopez, who dribbled on goal and slipped a shot into a gaping goal mouth.

Martin Bravo gave Pumas the lead for good later in the half. Efrain Velarde took the ball and carried it down the left flank on a Pumas counterattack. Velarde sent the ball over towards the penalty area and Bravo did well to let the ball carry until it was on his right foot, then knocked a shot past a helpless Blanco.

Ismael Iniguez, though, gave Pumas an insurance goal that proved to be valuable. In the 56th minute, Iniguez buried a header into the back of the goal as Pumas took control of the game.

"Everything went well for us," Iniguez said. "What we wanted to do, we did. We scored the sufficient amount of goals and at times we were very disciplined and showed some great football."

Gerardo Lugo scored a late goal for Cruz Azul but in the end Pumas did well to control and put away the game.

Pumas improved to 6-4-2 and at 20 points have a five-point lead of Guadalajara in Group 2. Cruz Azul, meanwhile, fell to 2-5-5 and sit at the bottom of Group 2 with 11 points. Pumas host Puebla next Sunday while Cruz Azul visit Morelia.

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