León is old news, Liga MX chases CCL trophy

Tigres, América advance to semis, Cementeros fade out

León might be king of the Liga MX hill, but a regional trophy is on the line as 2020 comes to a close. The long-delayed Concacaf Champions League resumed play this week at the quarterfinals stage and two Liga MX teams remain in the title hunt.

The Tigres made easy work of NYCFC to move into a semifinal match-up vs Honduran club Olimpia, while a lackluster América strolled into the Final Four thanks to its dominant first-leg win over Atlanta United back in March.

The CCL was postponed in mid-March when the nascent Covid-19 pandemic forced the MLS and U.S. authorities to adopt preventive measures. Liga MX followed suit a few days later, eventually canceling its Clausura 2020 season.

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Concacaf officials finally rescheduled the CCL, with a bit of a tweak of the ground rules, most significantly adopting a “bubble system” whereby all the games would be played in Orlando, Florida.

Three of the four quarterfinals had completed their first-leg matches with the LAFC-Cruz Azul series the exception. This last series was converted to a single-game elimination while the other three would simply complete the second leg. The semifinals and finals would then also be played as single games.

The Tigres (1-0 win at NYCFC) and América (3-0 home win over Atlanta United) had fashioned positive results back in March and were clear favorites to advance to Saturday’s semifinals. That’s exactly how things played out.

“Tuca” Ferretti went with a first-choice line-up and his Tigres eventually imposed their will on the match, a testy affair that featured 30 fouls (18 by the New Yorkers) and five yellow cards. André-Pierre Gignac headed home a splendid cross from Luis Quiñones in minute 30 and just 4 minutes into the second half Quiñones sent a perfect cross into the path of Leo Fernández who back-heeled the ball into the net. A magical goal that essentially ended the game there and then.

Quiñones was not finished, however, and he supplied Rafa Carioca with an easy cross to head home in minute 64. Javier Aquino completed the scoring with a solo effort in minute 85.

The Tigres were brutally efficient, taking only 6 shots on the night but getting all 6 on net. At the other end of the pitch, Nahuel Guzmán was called upon to make 4 saves and he did so with aplomb.

Earlier Wednesday, Olimpia had lost 1-0 to Montreal Impact but advanced to a match-up against the Tigres thanks to the away-goals rule having won 2-1 in Montreal in March. The Liga MX powerhouse will take the field on Saturday as heavy favorites as they seek their first CCL trophy.

Liga MX vs MLS in second semifinal

On Thursday, América coach Miguel Herrera sent a make-shift line-up onto the Exploria Stadium pitch to protect a 3-goal advantage. Injuries and coronavirus infections had deprived him of several starters, and the effect was noticeable.

Atlanta United had not played in five weeks and they were led by an interim coach (former Man United defender Gabriel Heinze was introduced as the new coach of the MLS club on Friday). Despite this, Atlanta grew in stature as the game went on, flowing forward and creating chances. Unfortunately, they ran up against a wall named Guillermo Ochoa and the Team Mexico goalie was brilliant. “Memo” made several sparkling saves in the first half, otherwise the Liga MX giants might have been in a panic down the stretch.

Jackson Conway finally found the back of the net in minute 82, but by then it was too late and América moves on to the Final Four thanks to a 3-1 aggregate win.

In Thursday’s nightcap, Liga MX fans were eager to see how Cruz Azul would respond after their implosion in the Guardianes 2020 semifinals. The Cementeros had squandered a 4-0 first-leg lead over UNAM, conceding three first-half goals before allowing a fourth in minute 89. The 4-4 aggregate score favored the Pumas as they finished ahead of Cruz Azul in the standings. Ironically, it was a 2-1 win over the Cementeros at Estadio Azteca in the season finale that allowed UNAM to claim the No. 2 seed in the Liga MX playoffs.

The crushing collapse resulted in the resignation of coach Robert Siboldi so “La Máquina Azul” would take on LAFC led by the club’s Under-20 coach, Luis Armando González.

It made no difference. The Cementeros lacked passion, with few players exhibiting pride in their colors. Sloppy passing and poor decision-making were on frequent display and despite taking a 1-0 lead on a penalty kick, the Liga MX pretenders played like they expected the worst.

Cancún native Carlos Vela took up the baton for LAFC and led the charge. Vela earned a penalty kick himself and converted it in minute 38 and the MLS club found the game-winner in minute 71. Cruz Azul only managed a single shot on goal all game – the penalty kick – and trudged off the field with their reputation in tatters.

LAFC faces América in Saturday’s nightcap with a spot in the CCL Final on the line just as reports have emerged that the Aguilas are deep in talks with Vela in hopes of convincing him to move to Liga MX.

For his part, Coach Herrera dismissed the Vela transfer rumors as much ado about nothing. For now, “E Piojo” will focus on trying to revive his team’s moribund offense. The Aguilas have scored only twice in their past four games and Henry Martín is responsible for both. However, Martín is unavailable after testing positive for coronavirus last week.

Just as important will be América’s defensive performance as LAFC is a quick-strike team that plays vertically, often utilizing one-touch passing to tire out defenses. No doubt, “Memo” Ochoa will have to provide another sterling performance if we are to see an all-Liga MX Final next week.

Liga MX fans would surely love to see another Tigres-América clash with a trophy at stake. The Tigres have lost three in a row to the Aguilas and they would be looking for revenge after their most recent match.