Tigres' SuperLiga Run Gives Hope For League Success

Tigres manager Daniel Guzman said the effort his team has been putting into during training has paid off.

Jul 16, 2009 10:35:12 AM

More On :  Tigres
Daniel Guzman- Tigres Manager (Mexsport)
Tigres UANL seemed to have been out of its league when competing in SuperLiga. As a club that could easily have been in the second division, Tigres was easily the least accomplished side of the four participating Mexican teams.

Now, Tigres are alone among their compatriots and will fight for the SuperLiga crown against Chicago Fire.
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Tigres beat Santos Laguna 3-2 on Wednesday in Foxboro, Mass., and the Mexican team now has a shot at winning the US$ 1 million prize.

For Tigres manager Daniel Guzman, the victory was not only important to keep the team's SuperLiga hopes alive but to also give hope for the season that is fastly approaching.

"The attitude Tigres showed, with just 10 men, to obtain the victory is what gives me belief that the team is understanding all that has been taught during the preseason and is aware of what is expected during the regular season," Guzman said.

Tigres, who open the season July 25 against Puebla, were able to withstand Lucas Lobos' red card. Lobos set up Tigres' first two goals but picked up two yellow cards in a five-minute span.

That the club were able to not only score a goal - when Lobos was sent off in the 69th minute, Tigres led 2-1 - but to add a goal to put the game away was what made the victory even more satisfying.


"You aren't going up against just any club," Guzman said of his rivals. "We are just starting to come together as a team. We have young players, some who did not go through the entire preseason with us but our attitude stood out."

The match was also bittersweet for Guzman as he faced the club he led to great success in the last two years. Guzman rescued Santos from relegation and led the club to a league title in his tenure with los Guerreros. He was sacked midway through the Clausura 2009 season but said he harbors no ill will towards his former team.

"Fortunately we were able to beat a rival whom I will continue to admire, for the quality of its players, which has been working hard now for three years and is very competitive. None of it was easy."

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