Game 15: Pumas 0 - 0 Toluca
Video here.Despite the continued support of their fans, Pumas are all but out of the Clausura tournament, after a 0-0 draw with group leaders Toluca. Again it was a story of missed chances, and now Pumas have to strive to win the last two games and hope other results go their way.
Tuca selected the same side as last week, with the exception of Scocco for Palencia and Iñiguez for Barrera. Toluca were without the suspended Israel López so Romagnoli played in defensive midfield.
The first half was fairly even, with Pumas trying to push forward in the heat, while Sinha and Da Silva did some handy work for Toluca, breaking up attacks and making things difficult. Leandro was back to something like his regular form, and especially in the first half his tussle with Sinha was fascinating, the two Brazilian-Mexicans struggling for dominance in the middle.
Chances were few but Toluca did find the left flank to their liking and Maciel clearly had the legs on Fernando Espinoza. Twice he raced down the left leaving the Pumas right-back way behind, the first time, early on, Bernal came out early and was lucky to shoulder the ball away for a corner. Then later on, after a poor Bernal clearance he fired the ball across goal and Verón was fortunate not to put into his own net.
Sambueza was Pumas's main threat going forward as he probed down the left-hand side with good support from Velarde. A couple of crosses were just out of reach of a poorly-positioned Solari, but one created the best chance of the first half as Solari headed back to Scocco who should have scored with a free header from close in, but only manged to rattle the angle of crossbar and post.
In the second half Castro raised his game and Pumas were effectively in control. During the first few minutes of the half Solari hit a shot well from the edge of the box from a Sambueza pass, but Cristante made an good save. Then Iñiguez, put through one-on-one with the Toluca keeper spurned the best chance of the game with a horrendous finish which went just wide. Barrera and then Palencia came on to try and add impetus to the Pumas challenge, and they continued to dominate, but a wonderful 1-2 which put Sambueza through just served to illustrate Cristante's fine goalkeeping once again as he save well with his legs from the Argentinian.
As the game moved to a conclusion it became clearer that Pumas were not going to score the precious goal that would keep the tournament in their own hands, and Toluca even had a chance to pinch it near the end when el "Jimmy" Giménez shot narrowly wide from the edge of the area. Pumas now find themselves 5th in group one with 16 points, and 14th in the general table. With two wins maybe Pumas will gain a repechaje spot, but they must rely on other results. Meanwhile Toluca have a two-point lead at the top of group one, and look set to qualify.
This week Leandro signed a contract with Pumas which will in principle keep him at the club till 2012. Meanwhile Tuca has agreed a one year contract deal. Pumas are now negotiating with River Plate to secure Rubens Sambueza on a permanent basis. Sambueza has been impressive, both after his injury in the autumn and throughout this campaign, and it would be good for Pumas to keep hold of him.
Tuca selected the same side as last week, with the exception of Scocco for Palencia and Iñiguez for Barrera. Toluca were without the suspended Israel López so Romagnoli played in defensive midfield.
The first half was fairly even, with Pumas trying to push forward in the heat, while Sinha and Da Silva did some handy work for Toluca, breaking up attacks and making things difficult. Leandro was back to something like his regular form, and especially in the first half his tussle with Sinha was fascinating, the two Brazilian-Mexicans struggling for dominance in the middle.
Chances were few but Toluca did find the left flank to their liking and Maciel clearly had the legs on Fernando Espinoza. Twice he raced down the left leaving the Pumas right-back way behind, the first time, early on, Bernal came out early and was lucky to shoulder the ball away for a corner. Then later on, after a poor Bernal clearance he fired the ball across goal and Verón was fortunate not to put into his own net.
Sambueza was Pumas's main threat going forward as he probed down the left-hand side with good support from Velarde. A couple of crosses were just out of reach of a poorly-positioned Solari, but one created the best chance of the first half as Solari headed back to Scocco who should have scored with a free header from close in, but only manged to rattle the angle of crossbar and post.
In the second half Castro raised his game and Pumas were effectively in control. During the first few minutes of the half Solari hit a shot well from the edge of the box from a Sambueza pass, but Cristante made an good save. Then Iñiguez, put through one-on-one with the Toluca keeper spurned the best chance of the game with a horrendous finish which went just wide. Barrera and then Palencia came on to try and add impetus to the Pumas challenge, and they continued to dominate, but a wonderful 1-2 which put Sambueza through just served to illustrate Cristante's fine goalkeeping once again as he save well with his legs from the Argentinian.
As the game moved to a conclusion it became clearer that Pumas were not going to score the precious goal that would keep the tournament in their own hands, and Toluca even had a chance to pinch it near the end when el "Jimmy" Giménez shot narrowly wide from the edge of the area. Pumas now find themselves 5th in group one with 16 points, and 14th in the general table. With two wins maybe Pumas will gain a repechaje spot, but they must rely on other results. Meanwhile Toluca have a two-point lead at the top of group one, and look set to qualify.
This week Leandro signed a contract with Pumas which will in principle keep him at the club till 2012. Meanwhile Tuca has agreed a one year contract deal. Pumas are now negotiating with River Plate to secure Rubens Sambueza on a permanent basis. Sambueza has been impressive, both after his injury in the autumn and throughout this campaign, and it would be good for Pumas to keep hold of him.
Goals
None
Cards
Pumas: yellow: Sambueza
Toluca: yellow: Gamboa, Sinha, Cruzalta, Dueñas
Player Ratings
Bernal 5 - a couple of poor clearances, and unusually jumpy coming out
Velarde 7 - more assured and added dynamism going forward
Verón 6 - still not at his best but no glaring errors
Palacios 5 - needs to work at distribution, was too easily hassled into aimlessly pumping the ball forward
F.Espinoza 5 - done for pace too many times and did not initiate much down the right.
Leandro 6 - good tussle with Sinha, more like his old self.
Castro 6 - much better second half but one or two imprecise passes let him down
Iñiguez 5 - seems to like it more when he comes on as a substitute, but then so does Barrera
Sambueza 8 - an accomplished all-round performance. Pity it couldn't have been capped with the winning goal
Scocco 6 - nice movement but missed an excellent chance
Solari 5 - as usual very static and got out of position on crosses.
Barrera 6 - one or two nice moves after he came on
Palencia 6 - all effort but little impact
Chiapas - only on for a couple of minutes
Elsewhere in Mexico
The Mexican National Team gained a 1-0 victory over China in Seattle in a turgid game at Qwest Field in Seattle. In "el Chucho" Ramírez's first game in charge, Cruz Azul forward César Villaluz scored after a chest down from Sergio Santana. Chivas won impressively 3-0 in Bolivia against San José, but go out of the tournament after Santos beat Cúcuta 2-1. Conversley, América lost poorly 2-0 in Santiago to Universidad Católica, but go through to the last sixteen at the expense of the Chileans by virtue of more goals scored.
Cruz Azul confirmed at least a repechaje place with a 2-0 win at Tecos, after an error by home keeper Corona let in a Zeballos shot. A Humberto Suazo goal gave Monterrey a deserved 1-0 victory over Chivas, while Veracruz kept themselves at least mathematically alive in the relegation fight winning 2-1 in Tuxtla against Jaguares after falling behind to a "Bofo" Bautista goal. Puebla moved to within one point of safety, convincingly seeing off Pachuca 5-2 in the Estadio Cuauhtémoc with a hatrick from Javier Cámpora.
San Luis made hard work of it, but eventually came away with a 2-1 win in Morelia to maintain their challenge, and in a close game Ulises Mendívil scored the winner for Atlas in their 1-0 home win over Tigres. In a game played in 40 degree heat, and which had to be stopped twice to allow players to take on water, Santos and Necaxa shared the points 1-1 in Torréon. Giancarlo Maldonado's return was a boon for Atlante in their return to their old home, the Estadio Azteca, against América, as he grabbed the winner in their 1-0 victory. Whatever happens now, América will finish in last place in the general table, their worst performance in history.
Toluca (24 pts) now lead group one from Jaguares (22pts) and Pachuca (21pts). Santos (25pts) lead group two, followed by Monterrey (21pts) and Atlas (19pts). Group three has Chivas (29pts) ahead of San Luis (29pts) and Cruz Azul (28pts). The first two teams in each group qualify directly for the quarter-finals, while the next four best clubs in the general table play off for the two remaining places. Fixtures are decided by position in the general table with the top-ranked team playing the lowest-ranked then the next highest against the next lowest and so on.
Cruz Azul confirmed at least a repechaje place with a 2-0 win at Tecos, after an error by home keeper Corona let in a Zeballos shot. A Humberto Suazo goal gave Monterrey a deserved 1-0 victory over Chivas, while Veracruz kept themselves at least mathematically alive in the relegation fight winning 2-1 in Tuxtla against Jaguares after falling behind to a "Bofo" Bautista goal. Puebla moved to within one point of safety, convincingly seeing off Pachuca 5-2 in the Estadio Cuauhtémoc with a hatrick from Javier Cámpora.
San Luis made hard work of it, but eventually came away with a 2-1 win in Morelia to maintain their challenge, and in a close game Ulises Mendívil scored the winner for Atlas in their 1-0 home win over Tigres. In a game played in 40 degree heat, and which had to be stopped twice to allow players to take on water, Santos and Necaxa shared the points 1-1 in Torréon. Giancarlo Maldonado's return was a boon for Atlante in their return to their old home, the Estadio Azteca, against América, as he grabbed the winner in their 1-0 victory. Whatever happens now, América will finish in last place in the general table, their worst performance in history.
Toluca (24 pts) now lead group one from Jaguares (22pts) and Pachuca (21pts). Santos (25pts) lead group two, followed by Monterrey (21pts) and Atlas (19pts). Group three has Chivas (29pts) ahead of San Luis (29pts) and Cruz Azul (28pts). The first two teams in each group qualify directly for the quarter-finals, while the next four best clubs in the general table play off for the two remaining places. Fixtures are decided by position in the general table with the top-ranked team playing the lowest-ranked then the next highest against the next lowest and so on.
Next Up
Pumas travel to the Estadio Luis "Pirata" Fuentes in Veracruz. It could be the day that Veracruz are relegated... Meanwhile on Tuesday Atlas look to join América in the last 16 of the Copa Libertadores as they take on Colo Colo at the Estadio Monumental in Santiago needing a point to qualify.
posted by John Kelly @ 1:15 pm
2 comments
2 Comments:
Thanks as always, sorry I have not been able to post for a while.
A draw with Colo Colo was enough to see Atlas through.
I can't tell you how much I love seeing America in so much trouble. Its just brilliant.
Pumas looked much better against Toluca, but still missing that edge.
Whats the score with Pachuca these days? Losing 5-2 to Puebla even 12 months ago would have been unthinkable, surely.
Whilst we are discussing the physical absurdities of managers in Mexico I must bring up Cruz Azul's Uruguayan - he looks like he might have been created in The Sims....
El Salvador got 2 each with China, which puts Mexico's lack lustre victory into perspective. Oh and congrats to Mexico and El Salvador's beach teams who will be going to France for the World Cup this summer - seeing off Costa Rica and USA (jejeje) in the process ....
Veracruz match is on Friday night, so i can't see it, boo .... but they must be happy to be getting us - a chance to keep survival alive a little longer, maybe. Shame I always enjoyed the away trip there, a couple of night buses, some sea air, and a cracking "proper" stadium to boot - in the middle of terraced houses and close to the pitch, it could easily have been the Baseball Ground or somewhere.
Although I would advise against an ice cream during your visit to the coast - i saw one deeply annoy it's owner there once upon a time...
What is ironic - amazing in fact - is that the two clubs that finished bottom of the tabla general in the last two seasons are the same two clubs who have now qualified for the last 16 of the libertadores! And the best achieving team of the last year, Chivas, are out! What can you make of that?
What I saw of the China game Mexico were poor. (So were China).
I agree with the comments about Veracruz - nice place but they have played some terrible football (remember against Pumas in CU last year?) Puebla aren't great but they have battled all season.
Am a bit upset Boca went through instead of Colo Colo as a one goal win for Colo Colo would have put both Atlas and Colo Colo through...
Hoping to see the match on Friday despite it being international no tv week!
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