The internship has been the platform of salvation for Chivas. The rojiblanco team is already in the quarterfinals of Clausura 2022 after stringing together a streak of five consecutive victories under the management of coach Ricardo Cadena, the most recent being the most important: a 4-1 win over Pumas in the playoffs, which scored Chivas back to a position of honor in the fight for the championship.
Guadalajara received the playoff series against Pumas at the Akron stadium, under the warmth of its people, and with a contrasting rhythm to that of its rival. While the rojiblancos arrived with a single defeat in their last 10 games, the university students suffered five setbacks in that same period, in addition to the fact that in the middle of the week they had another strong emotional blow by losing the final of the Concachampions 2022 in their visit to Seattle Sounders .
Chivas lived a week of celebration that they rounded off with the passage to the quarterfinals, since on the same Sunday of the victory against Pumas they turned 116 years old and during the week they renewed their star striker, Alexis Vega, until 2024. With this momentum, those led by Cadena jumped onto the field with the vision of returning to their first league for a year and a half, when they were semifinalists in the Guardianes 2020.
Alexis Vega himself scored the goal that sealed the beating against Pumas, which started from the 12th minute with a goal from Christian Calderón, taking advantage of the deficiencies and inexperience of the university rearguard, who lined up several youngsters due to the absence of key players such as Higor Meritao (due to accumulation of yellow cards) and Alan Mozo (due to injury). The rookies José Galindo and Santiago Trigos had to join the contention and the right side, but their performance showed the lack of travel in the First Division.
Although Pumas managed to tie quickly with a goal from Diogo de Oliveira at 19′, the incessant dominance was from Guadalajara, which was reflected in the final statistics: seven shots on goal by the rojiblancos for only one against the university students, which was precisely the goal of his Brazilian attacker.
Chivas’ drive crystallized from the second half with goals from Fernando Beltrán, José Juan Macías and Alexis Vega, although the last five minutes were the ones with the greatest revolution, when Macías and Vega sentenced the tie with two counterattacks to great effect. speed in which they were left alone in front of Alfredo Talavera’s frame.
The bad news for Chivas was the injury of their creative midfielder Jesús Angulo, who had to leave the field from the 33rd minute due to a fibula fracture suffered in a clash against Talavera. The midfielder will be in the operating room from the beginning of the week and his return prognosis is reserved, but he has been ruled out at least for the remainder of the Clausura 2022 tournament.
This victory marks the return of Chivas to the league since Guardianes 2020. It should be noted that until matchday 13, the Guadalajara team was ranked 14th in the general table, but thanks to its four-game winning streak under the interim coach , Ricardo Cadena, managed to climb to sixth place at the end of the regular phase, above clubs like Monterrey and Cruz Azul.
Guadalajara’s next rival in the quarterfinals will be Atlas, marking the first Clásico Tapatío in instances of direct elimination since the round of 16 of the Apertura 2017, which Chivas won; In Liga MX, the last time they met in a league was in the Clausura 2017 quarterfinals, in which the rojiblanco team also advanced.
Chivas had not won by three or more goals in Clausura 2022 since matchday 1, when they beat Mazatlán FC 3-0, so forcefulness was their best letter of introduction to return to the league, where Pachuca, Tigres, Atlas and America to the clashes against Atlético de San Luis, Cruz Azul, Chivas and Puebla, respectively.
Monterrey disappoints and Puebla rescues series
The hallmark of the Clausura 2022 playoff was drama. Of the four series played, three had to be resolved on penalties, the only exception being Chivas’ beating of Pumas in regular time.
One of the biggest disappointments was the elimination of Monterrey at the hands of Atlético de San Luis. The Rayados played the series at their home, the BBVA stadium, and although they started out winning 1-0, the Potosinos turned them around 1-2 and barely managed to salvage the tie in the last minute, forcing a penalty shootout.
Already from the 11 steps, Monterrey failed in effectiveness. High-value players such as Maximiliano Meza and Rodolfo Pizarro missed their shots against the great figure of the goalkeeper from Potosí, Marcelo Barovero, who did not celebrate the victory since he was champion with Rayados in the institution’s last Liga MX title in the Apertura 2019 .
Atlético de San Luis achieved its first qualification for the league since it returned to the First Division in 2019 under its new administration, in which the capital of Atlético de Madrid is invested. The next rival of the potosinos will be Pachuca, who finished Clausura 2022 as leader.
The other series defined on penalties occurred on Sunday with Puebla beating Mazatlán FC. Although the camoteros went up on the scoreboard from very early on, since after 16 minutes they were already winning 2-0, they closed the game in a totally contrasting way, allowing themselves to be tied and with a player sent off (striker Martín Barragán).
Mazatlan had reacted in regular time, but already on penalties his performance was cut short against Paraguayan goalkeeper Antony Silva, from Puebla, who saved two shots and reawakened the momentum of the fans. Thanks to this victory, the camoteros qualified for the fourth consecutive time to the quarterfinals of the league, their most constant streak in the 21st century.
Puebla will face America with the closing of the series at the Azteca stadium, while the other missing series will be between Cruz Azul and Tigres, closing in San Nicolás de los Garza next weekend.