SF 1st Leg: Pumas 3 - 0 Santos Laguna

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Goals here.

A disciplined and fully professional performance from Pumas gave them a good win over Santos to give them a cushion going into the second leg of the Apertura 2007 semi-final in Torreón. Once again Ignacio Scocco was the two-goal hero, and he was complemented by an excellent all-round display. Santos were left to rue some basic defensive frailties.

Pumas began with the team that had started the first leg against Toluca - González keeping his place ahead of Verón, and Barrera ahead of Iñiguez. Santos meanwhile started without Walter Jimenez who was injured against Morelia, and of course Oswaldo Sánchez, the Mexican first-choice keeper, who has a long term injury.

Early on Pumas established what would be the pattern for the remainder of the match as they dominated possession and pushed the ball around comfortably. Santos looked dangerous when they got to the final third, as illustrated in the 9th minute when a superb cross from deep by Ludueña fell only just out of reach of Benítez deep in the Pumas area. Nevertheless Santos were having to get numbers back to defend as the ball moved quickly through the midfield area. It was a clean game, well marshalled by Mauricio Morales, and Pumas did not concede a foul until the 18th minute, showing good control but at that point little incisiveness.

On about 20 minutes Pumas began to turn their pressure into half chances: first Barrera made a good run into the box but put his shot wide, then Castro slid the ball through to Solari who fired into the side-netting. This increasing domination led up to Pumas' first goal. A poor clearance by Miguel Becerra in the Santos goal was trapped by the bottom of Barrera's boot near half way. Scocco picked up the ball and drove forwards, unleashing a thirty-yard right-foot drive that nestled into the bottom corner.

Throughout the rest of the first half Santos were unable to create any danger, and González and Moreno was superb in the centre of defence against the much-vaunted Benítez and Vuoso. Pumas based many attacks down the left flank and Barrera was maybe under-used, but Sambueza made a couple of nice runs that came to nothing. In the last few minutes of the half the game got untidy, and there were bookings for Johnny García for a foul on Sambueza, Carlos Humberto González for pulling back Ludueña, Sambueza for very little, and Ludueña for bad tackle on Espinoza who was doing well to frustrate the man with the flat-top.

The second half saw no early changes but Pumas continued to move forward with intent and Leandro began to get more into the game. This pattern had barely been established when Pumas grabbed a second. A quick corner by Sambueza was swung in by Leandro and Moreno rose confidently to head only his second goal for Pumas. When the corner was taken there was a second ball on the field, but Morales sensibly played on as it left the field of play before Leandro's cross.

The cheers had barely died down when another dead-ball play resulted in the third. A free kick won down the left by Sambueza was chipped in to Scocco completely free in the six-yard area near the front post, and he made no mistake. On both goals there was the definite suspicion of sloppy marking by a Santos defence which had to that point been quite solid, and Castillo at right-back was particularly impressive at keeping tabs on Barrera.

Santos needed to change something and García went off to be replaced by Jorge Barrera and they enjoyed possibly their best spell of the game as they tried to push forward to reduce Pumas' advantage. Castillo managed a cross-shot from a tight angle after getting clear on the left while Vuoso went through on a Ludueña ball but Bernal was alert to make the save. But during this period Santos were also leaving a few more spaces at the back, and Scocco had en effort cleared off the line by Estrada and a medium-range shot pushed round the post by Becerra.

Sambueza, after a lot of work down the left took a rest, giving way to Iñiguez, while Castillo changed flanks to right full back to mark him. But the holes were appearing in the Santos defence nevertheless and Barrera's shot from ten yards was just deflected over on 75 minutes after great work by Leandro. Minutes later González should have scored from a corner when his free header 6 yards out was headed down too much and Becerra pushed it over on the bounce. Barrera was unable to take advantage of another good chance in the 79th minute when he fired over after the ball found him free deep in the Santos area.

Meanwhile as the game came to a close Bernal found himself in action a couple off times to snuff out dangerous looking Santos attacks, but ultimately Pumas were still dominating. The team of the "Comarca" (area of lakes) were putting plenty of energy into the last few minutes but the Pumas defence held firm and Santos were reduced to shooting from long range. As the clock ran down the crowd started an early rendition of "¿Cómo no te voy a querer?" and Chiapas got a five minute run out for Barrera, while Jorge Barrera was cautioned for a poor challenge on Solari.

So Pumas take a three goal advantage to Torreón, but Santos need only match the three goal victory to go through and are a dangerous side at home. But the unease after possibly their worst performance of the campaign was highlighted by the petty complaints from the Santos directors that their box at CU was not up to standard. One complaint was that they were "too close to the people"...

And just as an aside, Isabel Tovar enhanced her reputation as "the best assistant referee in Mexico" (the words translated from the TV commentary) after another flawless display.



Goals
Scocco (26 minutes) 1-0
Moreno (49) 2-0
Scocco (53) 3-0

Cards
Pumas: yellow: González (pulling back); Sambueza (not sure)
Santos: yellow: García (foul); Ludueña (bad tackle); Barrera (late challenge)




Player Ratings
Bernal 8 - an excellent performance snuffing out any danger
Velarde 7 - played with his usual hustle and bustle
González 8 - another assured display, pity about the missed chance
Moreno 8 - solid at the back and good goal
Castro 8 - everything good about Pumas flowed through him
Leandro 7 - a good second half, took a while to get into it
Barrera 7 - a couple of good runs, but missed chances to make it 4
Sambueza 7 - worked very hard and was a clear threat
Scocco 9 - yet again showing his goal-scoring instincts and fantastic strike for the first
Solari 6 - give him his due he works hard but does lack pace
Iñiguez 7 - linked well on the left carrying on Sambueza's work
Palencia 6 - still doesn't look much of a threat but the best we've seen for a while
Chiapas - only a couple of minutes at the end

Tuca 8 - got team selection and substitutions spot on. Tactics subdued a dangerous Santos attack.

Other Semi-Final
Chivas take a 1-0 lead into the second leg of the other semi-final against Atlante in Cancún. Ramón Morales scored from the spot for "El rebaño" (the flock, herd which is it for goats?) after a poor penalty award by Germán Arredondo: Omar Bravo threw himself onto the floor in the inside right channel with the lightest of touches from the arm of Mustafá. It is also interesting that the same referee had favoured Chivas over Atlante in the Clausura 2004 quarter-final in a much talked-about performance, with Atlante having two players sent off in the first hour. And incidentally Paco Palencia scored the winner for Chivas in that game. Anyway, let us hope that the overall result does not depend on that goal.

Next Up
The second leg in Torreón against Santos on Sunday afternoon.

QF 2nd Leg: Toluca 1 - 1 Pumas (agg. 1 - 3)

Video unfortunately with advertising.
Brief highlights with music here.
Lots of ¿Cómo no te voy a querer? here.

Pumas battled their way to a draw in the Bombonera in a game dominated by Toluca to set up a semi-final against Santos. The player of the game was undoubtedly Uruguayan Vicente Sánchez (see picture), in possibly his last game for Toluca, who set up the Toluca goal and created problems all afternoon. But in the end Pumas had enough spirit and luck on their side to see them through.

"El Tuca" Ferretti found no place in the starting line-up for the now available Verón, keeping faith in González after some fine performances. And more surprisingly he chose to start with Iñiguez ahead of Barrera. Toluca started with Sánchez and Da Silva (back from duty with Paraguay) with Esquivel on the bench.

Toluca began the game strongly, seeking an early goal to put pressure on the university side, with Vicente Sánchez especially lively. Their over eagerness was reflected by two early bookings for Da Silva and Rosada but Pumas were unable to find any sort of rhythm and were giving the ball away in midfield far too often. In the first fifteen minutes the reds created a couple of half-chances, while on a rare sally into opposition territory Iñiguez surged into the box and hit a left foot shot straight at Cristante.

Despite a great deal of movement, possession and pressure the Toluca attack was unable to create too many clear opportunities although Giménez stabbed one good opportunity straight at Bernal after 20 minutes. Nevertheless there was a deal of menace in their play and they were pressuring high up the field making it hard for Pumas to play a possession game. The frustration in the midfield led to Leandro receiving a caution for pulling back Carlos Morales.

Just as Pumas were starting to get a foothold in the game after a nice move between Espinoza and "El Cachas" Iñiguez, Toluca scored. From a long clearance by Cristante in the 33rd minute González was caught out of position on the header. Giménez headed on to Sánchez who held off three defenders before slipping the return to the advancing Giménez. Bursting through he slipped the ball between Bernal's legs from the edge of the area. Toluca were galvanised and Pumas, looking nervous, really struggled to hold on until half time. Sánchez put in a number of dangerous crosses as well as swivelling from a corner to put a left foot shot just wide. Meanwhile at the other end Scocco nearly managed to score on the break after he volleyed wide from a Solari knock-down.

It was a good half from Toluca, and with the goal Tuca clearly had some work to do at half time. In the end he brought off Iñiguez and Sambueza to bring on the pace of Barrera and reinforce the defence with Verón. Barrera made a lively start but so did Toluca with Moreno having to be alert to nudge away another dangerous Sánchez cross. Solari meanwhile was booked for a lunging tackle on Da Silva, and Barrera (harshly) for a push on the same player.

Pumas were having a lot of trouble in their own area: Sánchez hit a chilena (overhead kick) straight at Bernal while the ever-improving Rosada had a half chance after a scramble in the box. Toluca looked to push home their pressure bringing on Diego de la Torre for Cruzalta and continued to dominate.

But by pushing forward space was left for Barrera to attack, and after a quick break-out from Castro, Barrera took the ball on and squeezed a left foot shot against Cristante from a tight angle. This was to foreshadow the killer blow three minutes later: on 63 minutes Pumas were level. Barrera yet again ran at the stretched Toluca defence but this time up the middle. After beating two players his right foot shot could only be parried by the goalkeeper and Solari pushed in the rebound. It was hardly deserved, but Barrera's pace and skill had brought a different aspect to playing on the break.

The game became a little messy as Toluca tried to rebuild. Castro was booked for pulling back Rosada and Morales went off after clashing heads with Solari, while González his replacement also went into the book for a studs up challenge on Leandro.

With about twenty minutes to go the "pingos" (imps - maybe because Toluca are "little devils"?) stepped up the pace and created their best chances of the game. Diego de la Torre missed the best of them as Rosada found him with a lovely cross alone about ten yards out, but he fluffed the chance wide. Then on 79 minutes Giménez got clear after confusion on the edge of the box but scuffed his chance over. And Bernal had to cling on to a fierce Da Silva shot from the edge of the area. The veteran Pumas goalkeeper also had a lot of work to do fielding crosses which were now raining in on the Pumas area. With 6 minutes to go Esquivel climbed above Velarde onto the end of one of those crosses and rattled the crossbar, while a shot on 85 minutes hit Verón's elbow as he turned away and a penalty was rightly not given.

Credit to Toluca, even though the tie was all but over they kept pushing to the end, Edgar González heading straight at Bernal from another Sánchez cross. But Pumas held on and move on to the semi-finals while Toluca plan for next season.

Goals
Giménez (33 minutes) 1-0
Solari (63) 1-1

Cards
Pumas: yellow: Leandro (pulling back), Solari (poor tackle), Barrera (push), Castro (pulling back)
Toluca: yellow: Da Silva (climbing), Rosada (non existent foul), Ponce (studs up tackle), González (late tackle)

Player Ratings
Bernal 7 - did what he was asked
Velarde 7 - had problems with Sánchez but worked hard
Espinoza 7 - got forward when he could
González 7 - good except for error on the goal
Moreno 6 - occasionally panicky
Castro 6 - didn't really get into the game
Leandro 6 - always under pressure
Iñiguez 7 - created some danger going forwards
Sambueza 7 - looked lively but was closed down well
Scocco 6 - quiet apart from his first half shot
Solari 7 - worked hard in attack and defence and took goal well
Barrera 8 - changed the game with his pace and skill
Verón 7 - brought much needed manpower and calm to the defence
Palencia - not on long

Tuca 8 - good substitutions when things were getting tough. Kept his cool.

Elsewhere in Mexico
Chivas advanced to the semi finals with a regulation 1-0 over San Luis in the Estadio Jalisco, the goal once again by Sergio Santana.

Meanwhile Atlante beat Cruz Azul 2-1 in Cancún, the star "el chícharo" González. Maldonado scored in the first half, while González netted a long-range effort in the second. Borgetti got a close-range consolation for the "cementeros".

Santos, the top team from the regular season, confirmed their semi-final place with a 3-2 win in the Estadio Corona. Goalscorers were Ludueña, again from a free kick, Johnny García and Vicente Vuoso, while Morelia replied through Ever Guzmán and a stunning free kick from Fernando Arce.

Next Up
Pumas take on superlíderes Santos - first leg in CU on Thursday.

Full draw
Santos v Pumas (Thursday and Sunday)
Atlante v Chivas (Wednesday and Saturday)

QF 1st Leg: Pumas 2 - 0 Toluca

See the goals here.

First half highlights here. Second half here.

After dominating this opening leg of the quarter-final against Toluca, Pumas nevertheless had to rely on two controversial goals to give themselves a cushion going into Sunday's return at the Bombonera. Nacho Scocco was the hero with the two goals, while Rubens Sambueza was the other star. For Toluca, Zinha is banned from the second leg after being sent off.

Pumas started with a now familiar line-up, González continuing to deputise for Verón who had only just returned from international duty. Zinha started for Toluca, but Da Silva was out and Uruguayan Vicente Sánchez was on the bench after a long trip back from South America. Toluca started slightly the better. Although Pumas moved the ball around confidently it was the "red devils" who were the more incisive, Adrián getting in a dangerous 3rd minute cross which Moreno blocked, and a Toluca free kick ten minutes later deflecting off Sambueza onto the foot of the post with Bernal stranded.

Toluca kept pushing forward but it was then that Pumas struck. A good cross in the 17th minute by Sambueza cleared the front post defenders and Barrera pushed it down for Scocco to fire home from 8 yards. There was a lot of polemic about the goal as some people felt that Barrera fouled De la Torre as he set up Scocco. The TV phone-in had exactly 50% saying the goal should stand and 50% that it should be disallowed. It was a marginal decision: the defender bent down and fell over, and Barrera did make contact with his hip. Let us just say that it was a stroke of good fortune for Pumas that the goal stood.

After the goal Pumas stepped up the pace, and began to mark tightly when Toluca had the ball. Sambueza in particular was causing problems as he shot narrowly over and served an inviting cross that Solari couldn't quite get to. Both teams were pressuring the ball carrier, but Pumas were the more assured at holding on to it and the "choriceros" (sausage boys - I believe the area around Toluca is famed for its sausage) were struggling to find any kind of forward momentum. The Pumas midfield was dominating Zinha and Scocco was starting to find some space. He began to make the defence look frail with a couple of fine runs and a shot that went over from a Velarde throw-in. Nonetheless despite their domination the score remained 1-0 at half-time.

José Pekerman the Toluca coach clearly felt that a change was needed at half time, and Vicente Sánchez replaced Carlos Morales. For the first few minutes of the second half Toluca gained the upper hand, but were unable to penetrate a resolute Pumas defense with Moreno and González outstanding. But their second good period of the match preceeded conceding their second goal. Scocco and Sambueza worked hard to keep the ball in down the left, then Scocco broke clear and ran strongly into the box. His shot struck Gamboa's arm and a penalty was awarded. Again there was plenty of incident surrounding the goal. Firstly the award was made by the assistant referee after the the referee Francisco Chacón appeared not to have noticed the offence yet was positioned closer to the action. Secondly there was at least the suspicion of ball to arm rather than arm to ball. Gamboa did, however, dive across the line of the shot with his arms slightly raised, and on balance I think the penalty was a correct call. Not so goalkeeper Hernan Cristante whose remonstrations cost him a yellow card.

Meanwhile there was a dispute in the Pumas ranks as to who should take the penalty. It appears Solari is the official penalty taker, but it was impossible to tear the ball from Scocco's grasp and he converted confidently from the spot. The two were still gesticulating at each other as they returned to the centre circle. Not only that but Zinha had clearly lost his patience and he continued to make his opinions strongly felt to the referee after being booked in the centre circle. These further comments prompted Chacón to reach into his pocket for a second time and Zinha was gone, as well as ruled out of the return leg.

Pumas now had a two goal lead and were playing against ten men. It was a good opportunity to kill the tie off. But despite controlling the rest of the game and creating several good chances, they were unable to add to the total. First Scocco forced Cristante into an uncomfortable save from a long shot, and then Sambueza made a fantastic long run but the through ball was not read by Solari. A curiously quiet Barrera whose crossing radar had been off all night made way for Iñiguez who immediately made an impact down the right, while Rosada picked up a yellow for a clumsy foul on Leandro, and Esquivel came on for the tiring "el Jimmy" Giménez.

The last ten minutes Pumas pushed forward. Scocco appeared to have run out of steam, but Sambueza perservered looking fresh. Then Chiapas replaced him and Palencia replaced Scocco. The changes made a difference: Paco should have had a penalty when clearly fouled in the box but the referee was well behind play. And then Cristante made a superb save from a Leandro free kick which was headed for the top right corner. Iñiguez was also creating all sorts of problems down the right hand side.

Still none of it came to anything, and so Toluca will still go through if they beat Pumas by two goals on Sunday.

Goals
Scocco (17 minutes) 1-0
Scocco (54)(pen) 2-0

Cards
Pumas: none
Toluca: yellow: Cristante (complaining to the ref), Rosada (foul from behind); red: Zinha (two yellows as Cristante)

Player Ratings
Bernal 6 - not much to do
Espinoza 6 - looked a little uncertain at times
González 8 - very assured (will Verón get back in the team?)
Moreno 8 - excellent performance
Velarde 7 - defended well and linked to Sambueza
Castro 8 - worked superbly with Leandro
Leandro 8 - a couple of good shots
Barrera 6 - not one of his better days but one excellent run
Sambueza 9 - a constant threat behind Pumas best work
Scocco 9 - selfish but skillful and difficult to contain
Solari 6 - lack of movement a problem. Hope there is no permanent rift with Scocco.
Iñiguez 8 - always a danger
Palencia & Chiapas - didn't see much but Paco looks sharper than he has.

Tuca 8 - has got the team working well. Iñiguez substitution good.

Other Quarter-Finals
Pumas were the best of the home teams in the quarter-final first legs.

Atlante, despite missing top scorer Maldonado (playing for Venezuela) take a 1-0 advantage back to Cancún after an early Gabriel Pereyra goal gave them victory in the Estadio Azul. There were also two sendings-off and ex-Puma David Toledo rattled the bar with a second-half shot.

Meanwhile in the Estadio Lastras Ramírez in San Luis Potosí, Chivas came away with a 1-1 draw thanks to a first-half effort from Sergio Santana. San Luis equalised in the last minute through goal machine Alfredo Moreno. Ex-Pumas midfielder Gonzalo Pineda was sent off (rather harshly) for two fouls.

Morelia will have to win by three goals in Torreón on Sunday if they are to progress after losing 0-2 to Santos. Castillo scored early on and Ludueña made it two after scoring from a free kick that should never have been given. For Monarcas Landín had a goal disallowed (correctly) for offside.

Next Up
The second leg in the Estadio Nemesio Diez in Toluca on Sunday.

Repechaje

A pleasant sight for Pumas eyes: López looking miffed as he spurns another chance in América's defeat by Morelia.

While Pumas were not in action, they finally learnt their quarter-final opponents this weekend.

After a dismal display on Thursday in Monarcas by a team admittedly tired and depleted after their win against Millonarios on Tuesday, América could not turn round a three-goal deficit in the return leg and go out depsite a 1-0 win in the Azteca. They were admittedly hampered by the absences of Insúa and Cabañas on international duty, but will console themselves with a place in the final of the Copa Sudamericana in December against Argentinian club Arsenal.

Meanwhile current champions Pachuca were soundly beaten by Cruz Azul: 2-0 in Pachuca behind closed doors on Wednesday and 4-0 in the estadio azul. Cruz Azul's only worry was the injury to top striker Miguel Sabah, but he was ably replaced by ex-Bolton frontman and Mexico top-scorer Jared Borgetti.

All this means that Pumas play Toluca on Thursday night in CU and then on Sunday in the return leg at the Bombonera in Toluca.

Full Quarter-final draw

Santos v Morelia (in Morelia on Thursday and Torreón on Sunday)
Toluca v Pumas (in CU on Thursday and Toluca on Sunday)
Atlante v Cruz Azul (in Estadio Azul, Mexico City on Wednesday and Cancún on Saturday)
Chivas v San Luis (in San Luis on Wednesday and Guadalajara on Saturday)

And just a reminder. The higher ranked team (in this case Santos, Toluca, Atlante and Chivas) plays the second leg at home, and in the event of a draw on aggregate the higher ranked team goes through (except, of course, in the final).

Game 17: Pachuca 1 - 1 Pumas

Video
In a game that had the feel of a final, with some good quality football played, Pumas held on for a draw against current champions Pachuca and qualify direct for the Liguilla, while the Tuzos face a tough repechaje tie against Cruz Azul.

In the continued absence of Verón Pumas started with the same line-up that had put eight past Veracruz, and on a bright late afternoon in Hidalgo it was the University side that started better. The confidence from last week's game was clearly there as Barrera, Sambueza, Scocco and Leandro moved the Pachuca defence around and immediately caused problems, Solari putting a header over, and Cota cutting out a dangerous Barrera cross.

This little dominant spell led to the first goal of the game. A great ball down the right found Scocco who found space between two defenders with consummate skill and fired a curling cross towards Sambueza advancing towards the edge of the area. As the ball approached its second bounce Sambueza hit it left-footed first time and it flew right into the top corner. Arguably Pumas' best goal of the campaign.

Needing only a draw this gave Pumas some breathing space, and Pachuca had to work hard to pull things round. But they did just that after Cacho was booked for a poor foul on Castro creating a couple of half chances before drawing level from a long free-kick. Poorly cleared by Moreno, the ball fell to Caballero near the by-line and López headed his cross past Bernal for the equalizer. The goal was sloppy defending but nonetheless deserved for the approach play from the Tuzos during this period. Nevertheless Caballero's cross was made easier since Velarde had been impeded and was lying on the floor. It was probably not deliberate but it was unfortunate for Pumas at that time.

For the rest of the half Pachuca dominated with smooth possession football, although the Pumas side slowly raised their game to begin to probe for openings too. Pumas were making too many mistakes bringing the ball out of defence and the Pachuca front line forced Moreno, Velarde, Espinoza and González into too many aimless long balls. Caballero, Giménez and Correa began to control the midfield with Rodriguez finding space between Espinoza and González whose communication was sporadic.

The only clear chance though fell to Rey, whose shot from the inside left channel was blocked well by Bernal, with Moreno clearing the follow-up. Nevertheless Pachuca looked dangerous, particularly from set pieces, and the young Pumas defenders were looking a little panicky. It did not help that Paul Delgadillo was fooled a number of times into giving free-kicks for players falling over.

After half time, when Pumas came out late, they were much steadier and the game was very even. Alvarez replaced Rodriguez and then Chitiva came on ten minutes later and they invigorated Pachuca. But Pumas refused to be bullied and created danger of their own, particularly through the excellent work of Sambueza. But still Pumas were indebted to Bernal for two good saves, one on 50 minutes after an excellent cross from Alvarez, and one after a Barrera error let in the same player and the veteran keeper picked the ball off his toes.

Pumas were sitting deeper now with two men on Alvarez and Velarde having to work hard on Chitiva. Pachuca were basically controlling the game but with Pumas looking good on the break. There were even calls for a penalty for Pumas after a soft free-kick was floated into the box and Barrera was apparently impeded. I would like to be able to comment on this but the tv immediately and annoyingly went off to a Halls advert...Meanwhile on 63 minutes Alvarez nearly had a "gol olímpico" with Bernal flapping at a corner.

Pumas were still in it and creating good chances despite Sambueza's caution for a poor tackle on half-way, and Solari for not much. Scocco had an excellent chance from a Barrera cross but his powerful header was just too close to Cota and he tipped it over the bar. Then Scocco shot straight at the keeper after being put through by Sambueza.

Mystifyingly Tuca took off the most incisive player, Sambueza and put on the often innocuous Iñiguez. But Ismael did well and pushed the Pachuca defense around. Meanwhile Marquez came on for Pachuca and proceeded to miss four chances for them, two well saved by Bernal and one excellent tackle from Espinoza. And Barrera missed a reasonable chance after the ball was laid back by Solari, who in turn missed an excellent opportunity put one on one with Cota but unable to finish.

The last ten minutes were tense as Pachuca started to throw players forward and Pumas became nervous at the back. But Pumas slowed the game down with Palencia and Diego coming on and Solari and Bernal going down injured. In the end the home team were unable to make their superior possession count and will now have to rely on advancing through "repesca". But the slowing down tactics of the Pumas team, and the referee not adding enough time (they had a point) incensed some of the Pachuca players and Alvarez managed to get himself sent off after the final whistle. There was also some trouble in the stands as assistant referee Héctor Delgadillo was hit by a missile from the crowd (reportedly ice) and there were angry scenes not unrelated I suspect to Pachuca's inability to win in seven consecutive home games.

It has to be said that players who remonstrate with officials do nothing to calm the atmosphere in the stadium, and some sort of inquiry might be welcome so that these kind of scenes can be avoided in the future.

Goals
Sambueza (7 minutes) 1-0
López (15) 1-1

Cards
Pumas: yellow: Scocco (bad tackle - his fifth so may well be suspended), Sambueza (bad tackle), Solari (who knows), Leandro (mouth - again!), red: none
Pachuca: yellow: Cacho (bad tackle), Giménez (remonstrating with ref after the game) red: Alvarez (as Giménez)

Player Ratings
Bernal 8 - kept Pumas in it with a series of fine saves
Espinoza 7 - some good tackles but needs to communicate more with González
González 7 - battled well but flustered in distribution
Moreno 6 - at fault for goal and panicked at times
Velarde 7 - coped well with a lively Pachuca attack
Leandro 7 - drifted in and out but good at best
Castro 7 - worked hard but just lost out to Correa and Caballero
Barrera 7 - quieter than last week but some nice crosses and one lovely run
Sambueza 9 - easily the most dangerous player and wonderful goal
Scocco 7 - played well but should have scored
Solari 5 - very limited and missed a one on one.
Iñiguez 7 - fairly impressive and increased the tempo at an important time
Palencia, Diego - only on for a couple of minutes

Tuca 7 - clearly his team talk at half time worked to some extent. Strange he took off Sambueza who was creating problems and not Solari who was doing nothing.

Elsewhere in Mexico
Everything was decided in advance but some interesting games nevertheless. Chivas won a nine goal thriller (5-4) against Jaguares, Veracruz bounced back winning 3-2 at home to Tecos, América and Cruz Azul both won ahead of their repechaje games. Top team Santos drew with San Luis, whose two goals were penalties by Moreno confirming him as league's top scorer (18), while Atlante (4-0) and Toluca (2-0) both won comfortably against lowly Puebla and Atlas respectively.

Final table

1st Santos 38pts
2nd Toluca 34pts
3rd Atlante 33pts
4th Chivas 31pts
5th San Luis 29pts
6th América 26pts
7th Cruz Azul 25pts
8th Pumas 24pts
9th Pachuca 24pts
10th Morelia 22pts

Next Up
Cruz Azul v Pachuca and América v Morelia in repechaje this week. If Cruz Azul and América win Pumas play Santos, if one of them win they play Toluca, and if neither win they play Atlante in the quarter-finals.

Game 16: Pumas 8 - 0 Veracruz

Video
At the end of a troubled week for Pumas, a fine team performance and an excellent individual contribution from Pablo Barrera crushed a poor Veracruz side whose defensive frailties ensured the biggest Pumas win in the league since 1976. Earlier in the week Tuca had been cautioned by the University following comments about the Interliga, in which Pumas confirmed their participation (starting 1st January). He had suggested, not without reason, that there was more financial than sporting interest in the tournament Similarly he had had to bite his tongue following Verón's three match ban being upheld, while an América player Lucas Castromán recieved a one match ban for a similar offence. Sunday's game in CU therefore came as the perfect tonic. Pumas confirmed their spot in repechaje and are one point off a spot in the quarter-finals.

The team was the same as that which started against Toluca, with the exception of the return of Sambueza instead of Iñiguez. And the team started strongly with Scocco putting a lovely cross in which flew inches from Solari's head, and then Scocco himself shooting straight at the keeper from a well paced Barrera through ball. Nevertheless in the first few minutes the team was also a little twitchy at the back as Veracruz got in a couple of decent crosses from the right.

It mattered little though as a burst of three goals in four minutes virtually killed the game off and settled any nerves. Barrera was running rings round the Veracruz defense and when a Sambueza cross was swung in from the left it missed Solari and skimmed off a defender's head for Barrera top easily lose his marker and knock it first time into the near bottom corner. Two minutes later a long ball out of defense found Barrera on the right who swung in an excellent cross along the six-yard line which Solari only had to tap in. And it was three on 17 minutes when Sambueza held the ball up on the by-line to the left of goal and slid it back for Leandro to side-foot home left-footed from fifteen yards. All the goals were well taken, but the Veracruz marking on every occasion was sloppy, and despite a valiant midfield effort and some fight from Hugo García up front, they fully deserved to be three down.

The next twenty minutes saw Veracruz's best spell of the game, with García twice going close, once from a swivel in the area, and once from a long-range shot that Bernal had to parry. Bravo meanwhile looped a weak header over the bar. Pumas were a little sloppy at the back except the excellent Espinoza who pulled off two wonderful tackles in the area, one of which led to a fabulous break spoiled only by Solari's poor touch on the edge of the Veracruz area.

Then Scocco started to get into the game. First Rosales was booked for a clumsy challenge on him, and then Nacho won a free kick from a deft flick on. The ball was quickly played to Barrera who filtered an exquisite ball through to Nacho and he slammed it into the roof of the net from a narrow angle to make it four. There was just time for Lopez Mondragon to be booked for taking a hand to Scocco's stomach and García to have Bernal push a nice near-post header round the post, and that was half-time.

Within fifteen minutes of the restart it was 8-0! Three minutes into the second half, a defensive error from a throw-in let in Scocco who drove powerfully past Villaseñor. Then a half shot from Barrera was picked up by Solari who rounded a wrong-footed keeper to make it six. On 53 miutes Barrera easily rounded his marker and put in a skidding cross which Solari put in with his knee. And finally Solari filtered the ball through to Scocco who waited at the by-line before spotting Barrera on the far side who slotted home from five yards for his second and Pumas' eighth.

Not surprisingly Tuca decided to bring on Iñiguez and Palencia to give them game time, and rest two key players, Scocco and Barrera. Similarly Chiapas came on on the left for the ever-dangerous Sambueza. Understandably Pumas lost a little of their edge with their three best attacking threats gone and apart from a Castro free-kick that went close the game petered out from there. The referee also seemed to feel a bit sorry for Veracruz as he persisted in giving them soft free kicks round the area in the hope they might do something. One was taken so badly it went for a throw-in!

And that was that - just time for a loud rendition of "Como no te voy a querer" and a few goyas for the team and the outgoing rector of the university bearded Juan Ramón de la Fuente. Pumas now have the second best goals scored and goal difference in the league after leaders Santos, and Solari moved to fourteen goals for the season, only two behind leading scorer Moreno of San Luis.

Goals
Barrera (13 minutes) 1-0
Solari (15) 2-0
Leandro (17) 3-0
Scocco (38) 4-0
Scocco (48) 5-0
Solari (52) 6-0
Solari (53) 7-0
Barrera (59) 8-0

Cards
Pumas: none
Veracruz: yellow: Rosales, López Mondragón, De Nigris

Player Ratings
Bernal 6 - did what was asked of him
Velarde 7 - cool in defence and linked well going forwards. Veracruz got a few crosses in from the right
González 7 solid in place of Verón
Moreno 7 - looked better passing out of defence under little pressure
Espinoza 8 - one or two excellent tackles and got forward too
Leandro 8 - he and Castro in complete control, nicely taken goal
Castro 8 - won lots of ball all night
Sambueza 8 - got in some dangerous crosses and ran well
Solari 8 - took his goals well
Scocco 8 - always looked dangerous
Barrera 10 - flawless display scored two and created three
Palencia 5 - anonymous
Iñiguez 6 - showed good pace but poor control (as always)
Chiapas 7 - not on for long but did well down the left

Tuca 8 - hard to criticize a manager whose team has just won 8-0. Handled the issues well in midweek, showing dissent but without risking censure from the authorities. Had to bring on Paco and Iñiguez to give them game time.

Elsewhere in Mexico
All the places in the Liguilla are decided apart from Pumas or Pachuca for the last automatic place. Santos (0-0 v Tigres), Atlante (1-1 v Monterrey), Chivas (3-0 winners at Puebla), Toluca (3-2 winners at Tecos) and San Luis (1-1 in Guadalajara v Atlas) have all qualified direct. The loser between Pachuca and Pumas will join América (1-0 winners over Necaxa), Cruz Azul and Monarcas (who beat Cruz Azul 2-1) to play in repechaje.

Next Up
A showdown in Pachuca for the final qualifying spot.

Game 15: Toluca 0 - 0 Pumas

Pumas fans must find it hard to come up with different words to describe the same kind of game that their team has been playing all season. Once again they entirely dominated the game against a Toluca side that was not even able to muster a single meaningful shot on goal. And yet despite plenty of chances, quite a few falling once again to Solari, they were unable to secure the win. Pumas are still believe it or not in a qualifying spot, second in group two after Pachuca could also only manage a nil-all draw with Puebla.

The match started on a cold night in Toluca, on a patchy pitch perhaps ravaged by frost. Bernal was back after his injury, and Tuca made two other changes, one enforced as Carlos Humberto González came in for the suspended Verón and rather surprisingly Iñiguez started on the left ahead of Sambueza. Toluca started without Sinha and played youngster Francisco Franco on the right side of defense.

The first fifteen minutes were charaterised by both teams feeling each other out, with lots of movement and action in the middle third, but little in the way of chances. But even at this early stage Pumas were the side creating the danger: a good Velarde run led to a free kick which Scocco hit straight at the goalkeeper while a long range effort by Leandro also ended up in Hernan Cristante's arms. And the Toluca goalkeeper was also in the action when a Franco error let in Solari who beat Cristante to the ball but the shot was smothered. The 38 year old keeper went down in the collision and was moving gingerly for the rest of the half.

The game then went quiet, as Toluca held the ball well without being able to create anything, and Pumas dropped back and let the red devils play in front of them. Then suddenly Pumas had a couple of excellent chances within a minute. First Scocco put a great ball through to Barrera who stepped through and shot against the far post with the keeper beaten. The ball rebounded to Solari on the penalty spot who predictably blasted over. Then Scocco, Leandro and Solari worked another opening for Barrera who fired it across the six-yard line, but Leandro was unable to get a touch.

During this period Barrera was finding a lot of space down the right, and Castro was now controlling the midfield allowing Leandro forward. It seemed as if Pumas were about to take the game by the scruff of the neck. Toluca were clearly missing Sinha, and when they went forward they were unable to find a way round Velarde and a revitalised Espinoza, with particularly C.H.González excellent in the middle.

Despite more good approach work Pumas were unable to create much more before half time. They almost created something for Toluca when Scocco sloppily gave the ball away and Vicente Guerrero beat a couple of players before being fouled by Moreno for the game's only yellow card. Although Armando Archundia was picky at times, he controlled the game well and there was never a need for more cards.

And that was half time. Lots of huffing and puffing from Toluca to little effect while Pumas created chances but were unable to finish.

Toluca needed to change something and at half time Carlos Morales came on for Franco which looked a good change. Sensibly Tuca kept the team which dominated the first half.

Within four minutes of the restart Pumas had a good chance. Unlike the days of Hugo Sánchez when you could rely on an ineffectual near-post corner, Pumas created a lot of danger from the set piece and here Solari mistimed his jump from a perfect delivery and missed when unmarked.

The university team were now clearly on top but still could not find the net as Barrera, Leandro and Iñiguez all had half chances they fluffed. And Toluca had their best moves of the game with Guerrero and Silva going relatively close.

On 63 minutes Solari missed another good chance from a Leandro corner, as his unmarked header was comfortably saved and then Solari optimistically claimed a penalty after blasting the ball at Silva.

Still Pumas pushed forward. Barrera and Espinoza were looking good down the right although Sambueza was finding it hard to get into the game. Barrera put in a couple of excellent crosses one of which Solari was unable to convert after cutting back unnecessarily while Toluca sat back more and more seemingly content with the draw. At the death Moreno had a clear chance from a corner by Sambueza but put it wide despite a lunge from Castro hoping to turn it in. And that is how it finished, in a result that obviously suits Toluca more than Pumas, but sets up what will be a do or die game against Pachuca in game 17.

One or two points. Firstly a flare was thrown onto the pitch in the first half and a man wearing a Pumas scarf was escorted from the ground by the police. One presumes the two events were connected but you never know. Secondly admission prices were double the normal amount (there were a few empty seats too). It would be interesting to know why this was but it wouldn't be a surprise if it was another example of the commercial exploitation of fans for financial gain.

Goals
None

Cards
Pumas: yellow: Moreno
Toluca: none

Player Ratings

Bernal 6 - really had little to do
Velarde 7 - some goods runs and untroubled at the back
Espinoza 7 - good going forward and worked hard in defence
Moreno 6 - solid but a couple of mistakes at the back and a miss from a header
González 8 - excellent on his 30th birthday
Barrera 8 - a handful all night - pity he couldn't convert his chance
Leandro 8 - always involved
Castro 8 - controlled the midfield
Iñiguez 6 - not great but his pace troubled the defense
Scocco 7 - faded a bit but plays well in the hole
Solari 5 - cannot afford to miss so many chances
Sambueza 6 - didn't get much ball but ok
Palencia 5 - really looks off the pace

Tuca 6 - I'm puzzled by Iñiguez staring over Sambueza, and I still see no merit in Paco-Solari up front

Elsewhere in Mexico

Toluca stay top of group one but Jaguares moved closer to Pachuca and Pumas with a 3-1 win in Veracruz. Atlante confirmed the second qualifying spot in group two behind Santos by beating América in Cancún, and América must now hope for repechaje. Meanwhile San Luis and Chivas hold the qualifying places in group three winning against Monarcas and Monterrey respectively, Cruz Azul falling back after amazingly losing at home to Tecos.

Next Up
A must-win home game against Veracruz. If Pumas win and since Pachuca play Jaguares they would just need a draw in Pachuca to qualify.