There are only two horizons Blue Cross during his participation of the weekend in the playoff of the MX League: Failure or becoming the team to beat during the league. This is how the cement striker diagnoses it Santiago Gimenezwho also pointed out in a press conference that his team does not feel the favorite for the playoff series against Necaxa, to be played next Saturday at 5:45 p.m. at the Azteca stadium.
“We are a team in which, if we are solid and united, we can be the great rival to beat, I bet that no team that is in the playoffs or league will want to face Cruz Azul, but first we have to win the playoff and go step by step. The ghosts are already left behind, winning the ninth all that was denied, “said the recently turned 21-year-old gunner.
Of the four tournaments that have been played under the playoff format, Cruz Azul has only been able to avoid this phase and qualify directly for the quarterfinals in one of them, which was the Guardians 2021, when they were overall leaders and became champions to break a 23-year drought without a league title. However, for the Closure 2022 They arrive with the weight of having been eliminated in the last playoff, when they fell 1-4 against Monterrey despite the fact that they also played it at home, the Azteca stadium.
“Obviously if we don’t qualify (to the quarterfinals) it would be a total failure, but I think the group is convinced of who we are, of what Cruz Azul represents and we are convinced that we have to go out and win against Necaxa. whatever it takes. Although we did not close the tournament well, today we have another opportunity to go out and show what this institution means”.
Machine the last opportunity to qualify for the quarterfinals will be played at home thanks to the fact that they finished in eighth place in the general table with 25 units, just two more than Necaxa. However, defining the series at the Azteca stadium is not a guarantee because of what happened against Monterrey last tournament and also because in this Clausura 2022 they lost five of nine games at home, their worst figure since 2016.
“In the Azteca stadium we have not done very well and we want to reverse that situation, because one being from within the team does not understand why it has not gone well for us at home, but we are confident that we can reverse it on Saturday. If we go out to win, we can reverse and that way we can reach the next games with more confidence, that confidence will take us to the top (…) In this final stage we are the ones who have to infect (with enthusiasm) the fans, until now I don’t think they are happy with the performance we have shown”, stressed Giménez, who has just participated with the Mexican team in the friendly duel against Guatemala on April 27.
There is parity in the most recent history of Cruz Azul and Necaxa played in cement territory. Of their last six duels, both at the Azteca and Azul stadiums, the balance is three wins for each, the closest being a 1-2 in Clausura 2022, the one that started with that streak of five losses at home for the light blue team in this tournament.
How do you work during the playoff week compared to the regular phase, do many things change?
“The truth is that we work differently because we know that if we lose we have to leave, so many times we think that on matchday 4 you can still fix the tournament in the last days, as happened to América, it is a bit of confidence but not right now, if you trust you lose. That also keeps the player very active, focused and that is the difference between a repechage training session and a regular training session. The mind is a bit tricky and now that we are in the playoffs, you see a very different training session, everyone wants to play, everyone shows up, everyone wants to win and that is getting infected with each other, “Santiago replied to The Economist.
The young national team also spoke about the rumors that have placed coach Juan Reynoso out of Cruz Azul despite what happens in the playoffs. He emphasized his and the group’s confidence in the Peruvian strategist, with whom they raised the ninth star just a year ago.
“We are a family, we will always support each other, we want to think first about this tournament. Too many rumors have come out that are not true, one lives it here inside and nothing like that has ever happened and the truth is that we are dead with the teacher and with each one of the companions until the tournament ends. For while we are a family and we are going to go for everything.