Pair Of Second-Half Goals Leads Cruz Azul To CCL Win

Cruz Azul overcame a 1-0 halftime deficit to beat Saprissa 2-1 in a CONCACAF Champions League match.

Oct 21, 2009 1:25:32 AM

More On :  Cruz Azul, Deportivo Saprissa
Pablo Zeballos - Cruz Azul (Mexsport)
Saprissa entered Tuesday's CONCACAF Champions League match against Cruz Azul with a flicker of life left.

But the Costa Ricans were destroyed on two fronts, the most damaging of which was their 2-1 loss to Cruz Azul at Estadio Saprissa in San Jose.

Coupled with Columbus' 1-1 draw in Puerto Rico that secured a quarterfinal berth for the MLS champions and also rendered Saprissa's match ultimately meaningless.
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El Monstruo of Saprissa did not roar much early on as the subdued home crowd did not seem to expect much from their shellshocked club. Saprissa had lost games at Cruz Azul and home to Columbus but had gave themselves some late life by tying Puerto Rico and at Columbus.

Kendall Watson scored from close range in the 41st minute to give Saprissa some life as well, but the late first-half goal was ultimately not enough to even close out the group stage with three points.

In the 56th minute, Cruz Azul equalized. Pablo Zeballos took a pass from Alejandro Castro near the penalty spot and held off defender Alexander Robinson. Zeballos slipped the ball to Ramon Nuñez and the Honduran international buried a shot into the back of the net.

The goal seemed to further stun the home faithful and soon la Maquina was able to send the purple-clad supporters home early.

In the 82nd minute, Nuñez took a ball down the left flank and ran towards the penalty area. He sent a ball towards the middle of the box with the outside of his right foot. Gerardo Lugo fanned on the shot but Zeballos ran onto the bouncing ball and knocked the ball into the back of the net.


The match finished in a 2-1 win for Cruz Azul, who finished the group stage with a nearly unblemished 5-0-1 record.

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