After 22 years, Atlas will return to a Liga MX Final, where it will face the León club in search of the second League title in its history after 70 years of drought, the longest in Mexican soccer. With a goal from Juan Ignacio Dinenno, who was eventually sent off for a foul on Aldo Rocha, the Pumas equalized the aggregate score 1-1 at the Jalisco Stadium, which was not enough for the Auriazules to continue sailing in the Liguilla by position in the table.
The draw was enough for Atlas to advance to the grand final of Mexican soccer, but without risking being too conservative in the face of unpredictable Pumas who managed to get rid of clubs that showed better soccer form during the regular phase, the rojinegros came out with an offensive plan to increase the advantage they had achieved in the first leg.
The foxes threw themselves on the cats seeking to get ahead in the match, they fired 11 shots, four of them on goal, where a star Alfredo Talavera managed to save each ball, get ahead of the rival’s arrivals and reduce effectively to keep the score at zero.
In this way, the foxes also contained Pumas in the first half, because despite having 56% of the possession, the university students only finished off Camilo Vargas’ goal once.
With the dream dissolving for the Pumas as the minutes passed, they raised the revolutions and in the 75th minute Efraín Velarde finished off against Vargas, although he saved the first shot, he made a mistake when rejecting the ball, which was in front of Dinenno, who went ahead of the goalkeeper and placed the ball in the net for 1-0.
With the Pumas seeking the second goal they required to continue in their quest for the title, the match turned dramatic. In the dispute over a center by Alan Mozo, Dinenno received an elbow in the rival area that caused him to bleed, despite the fact that the referee Pérez Durán reviewed the VAR, he considered that it did not merit the penalty against Atlas. The Argentine forward continued in the game with earplugs and a bandage on his nose; at the end, he received stitches and, according to the first medical impressions, it was a fracture.
Nine minutes were added to the scoreboard and at 93 Dinenno was sent off when, in a Chilean attempt, he also hit Aldo Rocha, who fell faint, but soon after he rejoined the game.
Exceeding 100 minutes of play, Pérez Durán blew the final whistle, allowing Atlas to return to a final for the first time since Summer 99 and in turn, extend the Pumas’ 10-year streak without official titles.
“The truth is that we were only the rival in more than 100 minutes. The games are won because you have made the rival lose or taking him ahead with your effort, with your personality and today I think it was the second; in soccer we never find the ways to do it properly. Atlas had goal chances, we had very few ”, considered coach Andrés Lillini.
The Atlas de Guadalajara is the team with the longest years without being champion of Mexican soccer, the only First Division title was in the 1950-51 season, because in Summer 99 they fell against Toluca.
“There are so many incredible sensations. I am proud and grateful to this group of players for their dedication, for their respect, for their commitment; to the directive for trusting; to all the staff for putting themselves at the service of this coaching staff and with the people that today it was impressive what they encouraged. Today, what I felt as a player with the Atlas was relived. We are happy beyond what was suffered but the team never lost its personality, its identity. We had many goal situations and football has these things ”.
After the rojinegros, the Puebla club and the Necaxa are the Mexican soccer teams with the longest drought of First Division titles, the last time the strip lifted the trophy was in the 1989-90 season, while the Rayos were they last crowned in the 1989-90 season.
Reference-www.eleconomista.com.mx