Liga MX: ‘El Flaco’ Tena and the state of the Chivas at the break
How does ‘El Flaco’ compare to ‘El Pelado’?
Luis Fernando Tena took charge of a 3-2-5 Guadalajara team with the all-important SuperClásico looming on the Apertura 2019 schedule.
With 26 years of experience, “El Flaco” stepped into the breach and his young team was massacred 4-1 by a veteran América club. That inaugural performance was followed by two draws.
Even though Tena was finally able to imprint his style on the youngsters and install a free-flowing offense, Chivas fans were unimpressed. The club won its final three games, scoring 3 goals in each, but missed out on the playoffs by 2 points.
When the club went on a buying spree over the winter, fans hoped a new coach would be brought in to spark a resurgence. Instead, Tena stayed on and the 1-3-2 start to the Clausura 2020 frustrated fans. But incorporating nine new players into a new tactical style was never going to be easy.
The Chivas then won three straight with J.J. Macías scoring a goal in each game, sending Guadalajara into the Top 5. Unfortunately, the suspension of the Clausura has Guadalajara’s resurgence on hold, but it provides an opportunity for a comparison.
Tena has been in charge for 18 games now and the Chivas have gone 8-6-4 in that time. That’s good for 30 points, and it is conceivable that “El Flaco” would have led the club into the playoffs in his first full season on the bench.
Almeyda was 5-8-5 (23 points) through his first 18 games as Chivas coach, getting into the playoffs during his second season at the helm.
The main difference is that “El Pelado” won trophies and, more importantly, he led the Chivas out of the relegation wilderness.
Still, Tena has Guadalajara off to its best start since that magical Clausura 2017 season when Almeyda helped the Chivas claim a double. The Chivas’ current 3-1-0 stretch has lifted the club into fifth place with 16 points, 1 point fewer than Almeyda had earned after 10 matches in the Clausura 2017.
Next. It all starts with the coaches. dark
“El Flaco” will not escape the shadow of Almeyda until he hoists a trophy, but the raw numbers indicate he has the Chivas headed in the right direction.