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Mexican Torneo Apertura 2005: Matchweek Seven [Sat Sep 17th, 2005]
Reviewing the recent action from the Mexican league:
MONTERREY 1-1 PUMAS
“We lost two pointsâ€, said UNAM head coach Hugo Sanchez after Pumas managed a draw against Monterrey. “We had clear opportunities to score against a difficult rival like Monterrey and even if the result leaves me at ease, I will never be satisfied, because a draw is like a lossâ€.
The match which was settled in the first half also marked the return of Monterrey’s Brazilian striker Alexandro Fernandes after a one-year hiatus due to injury.
Pumas defender Joaquin Beltran opened the scoring in the 16th minute with a potent header while Luis Ernesto Perez levelled the match for Monterrey with a well placed spot-kick in the 24th minute.
CRUZ AZUL 5-3 ATLANTE
An inspired Cesar “Chelito†Delgado bagged a hat trick in Cruz Azul’s five goal victory over Atlante. The hard-fought win has boosted the Blue Machine, as Cruz Azul are known, to the top of the table.
Cruz Azul, who led (4-1) at the end of the first half, almost fell apart as Atlante rallied, almost levelling the scores (4-3) after two goals in the final minutes of the match.
However, Delgado secured the win in the 90th minute, tallying his sixth goal of the season to lead the league. Cruz Azul midfielder Gerardo Torrado gave his impressions on his side's complicated victory. “The first half was solid; the team functioned to perfection, and the second half let us know that if we don’t give one hundred percent in every match, we can loseâ€.
MORELIA 3-1 TOLUCA
Monarcas Morelia climbed to third place of group one with a sound victory over Toluca. The match played at Monarcas Morelo Stadium saw the home side take a comfortable two-goal lead just before half-time.
Argentine midfielder Damian Alvarez opened the scoring in the 42nd minute, and three minutes later, Omar Trujillo with a potent shot from outside the box doubled the lead for Morelia.
In the second half Toluca tried to regain control of the match and by the 55th minute, Israel Lopez had cut down Morelia’s lead by one goal. Morelia head coach Ricardo Ferretti then brought in striker Luis Gabriel Rey, who proved to be a valuable substitution. The Colombian striker notched Morelia’s third goal (75th) to seal the win.
VERACRUZ 0-5 TIGRES
The Red Sharks of Veracruz suffered a humiliating defeat at home at Luis Pirata Fuente stadium against a fearsome Tigres UNAL. Argentine striker Nestor Silvera led Tigres attack with a double salvo, while Brazilian Julio Cesar Santos, Sixto Peralta and Carlos Maria Morales each scored one goal.
With the lopsided victory, Tigres climb to second place in Group Three, and third place in the general table, while Veracruz remain in third place of group two. Leo Alvarez, Tigres head coach, who rose as the club's youth coach to take over the club’s helm last season, is confident he has proven many people wrong.
“Many people were hoping that by matchweek four I would get sacked, but the numbers are there and prove how well the club has been doingâ€.
Alvarez, who last season became the clubs interim coach, won over the Tigres directors and fans with the teams' excellent run in both league and Copa Libertadores tourneys.
“I am confident in my work, in my capacity and my leadership, the numbers are proof that the team is travelling wellâ€, said Alvarez.
NECAXA 4-3 SANTOS
Necaxa overcame a two-goal deficit to defeat Santos Laguna at home at Victoria stadium. The visiting side took an early lead with a Miguel Zepeda blast from outside the box. Chilean midfielder Rodrigo Ruiz, with an impressive free kick, had Santos up by two goals by the 18-minute mark.
Necaxa however were quick to recover and one minute later, pulled back a goal. The match then turned into a hack fest, yielding four yellow cards in five minutes, but returned to being a footy game thanks to Ariel Lopez. The Argentine striker, with two brilliant strikes, put the home side in the lead just before the end of the first half.
Necaxa found a comfortable lead at the start of the second half with a Jose Hernandez goal in the 53rd minute. Santos, who never gave up, managed to claw back one goal, through Vicente Vuoso off a header in the 88th minute, but it would be too late as Necaxa held on for the win.
ATLAS 2-1 TECOS
The Rojinegros of Atlas improved their campaign to avoid relegation with a dramatic 2-1 victory over Tecos UAG. Atlas took an early lead after Tecos suffered the misfortune of scoring an own goal. Tecos, also in the relegation battle, fought back and equalised in the 24th minute with an Eliomar Marcon goal.
Tecos, with a strong defensive setup, held on until the last minute of the match. It was then that Uruguayan striker Guillermo Rodriguez powered in a header to score the winning goal.
The victory leaves Atlas in fifth place of group three, and above newcomers Dorados de Sinaloa in the relegation chart. Tecos, despite the loss, remain in fifth place in group one. The top two teams from each group advance to the league playoffs.
SAN LUIS 4-1 DORADOS
San Luis played their best match of the season to defeat relegation-bound Dorados de Sinaloa. The match proved to be a disastrous debut for Dorados Spanish coach Juan Manuel Lillo. Dorados easily went down 2-0 in the first half and then quickly allowed a third goal at the start of the second half.
San Luis, despite their dominance, never let down their intensity and was up by 4-0 as Ariel Gonzales tallied his second goal of the match in the 53rd minute. Bernardo Sainz scored Sinaloa’s loan goal in the 57th minute. With the victory San Luis climbed to fouth place of group one.
Dorados remain at the bottom of group two and are currently also at the bottom of the relegation chart.
AMÉRICA 0-0 CHIVAS
“They got off easyâ€, boosted America head coach Mario Carillo after his side battled to a goalless draw against archrivals Chivas. “I am not happy, the team played to win and generated sufficient opportunities to have taken a victoryâ€, said Carillo.
Indeed, America which hosted Chivas, in what is Mexico’s biggest club rivalry show down, suffered from poor finishing. The Aguilas (Eagles), as America is known, generated the most clear opportunities at goal, most of which ended up striking the goal posts or at the hands of Chivas keeper Oswaldo Sanchez, who kept his side in the fight with numerous last-ditch saves.
Chivas did create some their own opportunities, including a thunderous strike from the edge of the box which found the upper right corner only to get annulled.
Chivas head coach Xavier Azkargota was a bit more optimistic about the draw. “We would have all liked to win; this is a goalless draw that doesn’t leave us with a bad taste in the mouth, because we had motivation and willingness to win the matchâ€.
Despite the draw, America continue to top group one, but have been overtaken in the general table leadership by Cruz Azul. Chivas remain in fourth place of group three.
PACHUCA 5-1 JAGUARES
The Tuzos of Pachuca pummeled the Jaguars of Chiapas (5-1) to claim leadership of group two. Paraguayan international Nelson Cuevas, who is finally begging to show what he is capable of, capped a brilliant night by scoring a goal and assisting in two more.
Team-mate Juan Carlos Cacho opened the scoring in the 22nd minute, off a Cuevas through-ball. Fernando Salazar doubled the lead in the 31st while Colombian midfielder Frankie Oviedo, also assisted by Cuevas, put Pachuca up by three goals in the 47th minute.
Felipe Ayala scored Chiapas' loan goal in the 56th minute off a free kick, which Pachuca responded by scoring two more goals. Nelson Cuevas added his name to the scoresheet in the 70th minute and Luis Angel Landin scored Pachuca’s fifth goal in the 85th minute.
Chiapas head coach Fernando Quirarte was sacked after the match. He is the third coach to get sacked this season. Taking over Jaguares will be Luis Fernando Tena.
GROUP 1 GP W D L GF GA DIF PTS
1 América 7 5 2 0 12 5 7 17
2 Necaxa 7 3 3 1 12 9 3 12
3 Morelia 7 3 1 3 12 10 2 10
4 San Luis 7 2 3 2 10 8 2 9
5 Tecos 7 2 1 4 9 14 -5 7
6 Atlante 7 1 2 4 14 19 -5 5
GROUP 2 W D L GF GA DIF PTS
1 Pachuca 7 3 2 2 12 9 3 11
2 Toluca 7 3 2 2 10 10 0 11
3 Veracruz 7 2 3 2 14 18 -4 9
4 Pumas 7 2 3 2 5 10 -5 9
5 Santos 7 2 1 4 12 12 0 7
6 Dorados 7 1 1 5 7 15 -8 4
GROUP 3 W D L GF GA DIF PTS
1 Cruz Azul 7 6 0 1 22 8 14 18
2 Tigres 7 4 1 2 17 9 8 13
3 Monterrey 7 3 2 2 10 9 1 11
4 Chivas 7 2 3 2 6 8 -2 9
5 Atlas 7 2 0 5 7 11 -4 6
6 Jaguares 7 0 4 3 8 15 -7 4
Joel Aceves
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