'We deserved this' - Cruz Azul's Ángel Sepúlveda reflects on defeating América in the Champions Cup thanks to his brace

On Monday, Ángel Sepúlveda stated that he felt the responsibility of being the goalscorer Cruz Azul needed to eliminate América in the Champions Cup. His comments weren’t just words - on Tuesday night, he backed them up by scoring a brace at Estadio Olímpico Universitario to help his team advance to the semifinals.

"We don't focus on shutting people up, we focus on working. There's a history that people don't forget easily, we deserved this. The other series have been very tight, and some very questionable," he insisted

For Sepúlveda and his teammates, the matchup had a sense of revenge, as América had defeated them in the Clausura 2024 Final and the Apertura 2024 semifinals. The striker also acknowledged the impact of Vicente Sánchez as the team’s coach.

"Today it's my turn to prove it on the field; in the end, many times words are carried away by the wind," he said. "Today, I feel very motivated. Vicente's arrival has given us that extra push, maybe not the same style we had before, but now we flow. In the end, that's it—the team is confident, united, and today is a great reward."

Sepúlveda delivered on his words from the pre-match press conference ahead of the return leg of the Champions Cup quarterfinal between Cruz Azul and América. La Máquina ended the Azulcrema dominance and is now in the final stages of the CONCACAF tournament. Sánchez's work has been questioned at times, but the truth is that the Uruguayan coach has brought joy back to the team following the sudden departure of Martín Anselmi, just as the Clausura 2025 was beginning.

"Beating a great rival motivates us even more. We’re going with a lot of excitement and respect for the next opponent, but we’re very hopeful. Now, it's time to enjoy and tomorrow we’ll do an assessment and see how the players are doing," said the Uruguayan after Cruz Azul's victory.

"We faced a great rival, today the two most successful teams in the tournament faced each other. It was always going to be a match like this, tightly contested. Honestly, it's exciting to have faced such a great rival."

The team coached by Sánchez will visit América this Saturday in the 15th round of the Clausura 2025, aiming to secure their spot in the final phase. La Máquina currently sits in third place with 28 points and has not lost a Liga MX match since Week 7, when they fell 2-1 to Tigres. Since that defeat, they have accumulated five wins and one draw.