Monterrey eliminates Club América in the liguilla with a last minute goal

Club América were mere minutes away from qualifying to the semifinals of the liguilla until a mistake in the third minute of stoppage time cost them everything. Now André Jardine and the team will look to put this season behind them meanwhile Monterrey will continue to look for their sixth Liga MX trophy.

América had a big task ahead of themselves going into leg two but it was only a two-goal deficit and the azulcremas have been through worse. Monterrey has also been known to fall apart at the last moment in big games so there  was a big chance Jardine would be able to pull his side through. Unfortunately the Brazilian coach made mistakes before the game kicked off as he made questionable changes in the lineup.

In the defense, Jardine opted for a three-back without Ramon Juárez. For some reason Jardine is not a fan of the youngster even though he has proved time and time again how pivotal he is to the backline. Juárez was an important player during the road to the tricampeon as both a defender and a goal-scorer, but for some reason that was not enough for Jardine and he has opted to bench the youngster. This decision was in part why the defense and the team struggled. Then Igor Lichnovsky was benched in the defense but this decision was understandable considering the Chilean was responsible for the second goal in the first leg and his level has declined. Then in the offense Brian Rodriguez was benched while Erick Sanchez and Raul Zuñiga were brought on. These changes made no sense as Rodriguez had proved to arrive in big moments and Zuñiga had yet to prove himself. Sanchez also had yet to arrive in big moments. From the start, Jardine made questionable decisions that proved to bite him in the back.

For Monterrey, head coach Domènec Torrent made only one change as he trusted his team to get the job done. His only change was benching Ricardo Chavez in favor of Erick Aguirre. At the beginning it seemed as if Torrent was wise in his lone change but as the game went on it seemed to go wrong as his team allowed two goals and it seemed like they had fallen short once again. Thanks to German Berterame it all worked out as he made a stoppage time goal and Monterrey has a chance to go for their sixth Liga MX title.

América started the game with high intensity as they knew how important this game was. Monterrey knew it was important for them to take care of the goal and attempted to maintain possession but the Aguilas took over the ball instead. América maintained 58% of the possession compared to Monterrey’s 48%. This possession paid off as they got two early goals in the 30th and 59th minute.

Alejandro Zendejas opened the score in the Ciudad de Deportes after Alvaro Fidalgo sent a ball his way and Zendejas did not hesitate to take a shot from outside the box. He took this opportunity as the Rayados defense failed to stop him. They allowed him to take a shot instead of going up to stop him and his shot went into the back of the net to get the Aguilas going.

The second goal was all thanks to Raul Zuñiga. Erick Sanchez got the play started as he made his way towards the box and then sent the ball to his right where Zendejas was waiting. Zendejas then crossed the ball to the other side of the box, in between three Monterrey defenders, where Zuñiga was waiting to push the ball into the back of the net to level the match and send his side to the semis.

The Rayados defense had fallen asleep as their defense was not as sharp as it was in the first leg. The team as a whole had fallen asleep as they fell into the trap of a 2-0 scoreline. They relaxed their stance as they did not play with the same intensity as the first game. They thought they had done enough to make it into the next round but that was not true. If not for a last minute goal they would have fallen. Ricardo Chavez was subbed into the game in the 72nd minute and in the 92nd minute he sent in a ball into the box that Berterame got his head on and sent past Malagon. Kevin Alvarez was the one who was supposed to mark Berterame but he did not follow-through and that was all Monterrey needed.

Club América were seven minutes away from the semifinals. All they had to do was make it through stoppage time but Monterrey had other plans. A small misstep ended in a goal and just like that the Aguilas’ dream of making their fifth consecutive final was gone. Fans are now calling for Jardine’s dismissal, but unless a backup is already secured this move will be a bad move. Instead América needs to regroup over this short break if they want the Clausura to end with a trophy.