Santos heads to Puebla with 3-goal advantage

Eduardo Aguirre scored 45 seconds after the opening kickoff and Santos went on to pound Puebla 3-0 in the first leg of their Liga MX semifinal series. The return match is set for Sunday night at Estadio Cuauhtémoc.

Santos took its first possession deep down the right flank where Carlos Orrantia slipped a low pass just behind the Puebla back line. “El Mudo” Aguirre reacted first, diving down to meet the cross at the near post. The ball ricocheted off his marker – Israel Reyes Romero – and bounded just inside the near post as goalie Antony Silva moved toward the back post where the header was originally directed.

The fans – barely settled into their seats – leaped to their feet and roared. Less than a half-hour later, they were roaring again when Aguirre bagged a brace. But there were some nervy moments before that.

Santos takes big step toward Liga MX Final

In minute 25, Maxi Araujo appeared to have tied the game up but video review revealed Amaury Escoto was offside at the beginning of the play. Less than a minute later, the Camoteros were down two goals.

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Winger Ayrton Preciado gathered in a pass near midfield with his back to goal, easily shook away from George Corral and turned toward the middle of the field, dribbling toward the half-moon. There he led Aguirre into the box on the left side and “El Mudo” lifted a left-footer over the hard-charging goalie who got a couple fingertips on it, to no avail.

Puebla did not slink away, however, forcing several big saves from Carlos Acevedo while also squandering three great scoring chances with errant shots. The Guerreros goalie made 5 saves in all. The two teams traded punches until Preciado, free at the near post, pounced on a loose ball off a free kick and blasted it into the net.

Things got worse for the visitors when central defender Maxi Perg was forced off with a calf injury and coach Nicolás Larcamón was forced to switch from a 5-2-3 to a 4-3-3 with former Santos player Diego de Buen coming on as a stopper. This allowed Javier Salas and Araujo to press forward a bit more and join the frequent attacks “La Franja” launched.

Despite 18 shots, none got past Acevedo. As such, no Camotero has scored since Matchday 15 (April 17) when Guillermo Martínez knocked in Puebla’s fourth against Atlético de San Luis. (Puebla advanced against Atlas in the quarterfinals thanks to an own goal by Zorros defender Anderson Santamaría).

“La Franja” is up against the wall and they must score at least 3 goals on Sunday. That’s no easy task, especially as Puebla has not scored against Santos since Feb. 7, 2020 (they were shut out on Matchday 17 this season, and lost 2-0 to the visiting Guerreros on Matchday 13 of the Guardianes 2020 season).