Chivas thrashed Mazatlán 4-1 and confirms a direct pass to the league

From the editorial

Newspaper La Jornada
Sunday April 30, 2023, p. a10

Chivas celebrates a season that vindicates him as one of the four greats of soccer, while Pumas will not even be able to play the playoffs, after saying goodbye to the season with a painful defeat against the leader Monterrey. With fine play, the rojiblancos thrashed Mazatlán 4-1 and sealed their direct pass to the league in the Clausura 2023 tournament of the Mx League.

It is not the only reason for celebration for the people from Guadalajara, since they also closed the regular season in third place with 34 points to match their best mark in short tournaments, which they also reached in Summer 1997, Winter 1998 and Clausura 2004.

With a precise play just after 11 minutes, Chivas warned that there would be no surprises in the Guadalajara stadium. Against the Mazatlán basement, they did not hesitate on offense and Víctor Guzmán scored the first goal with a header in front of the goal.

The minimal advantage did not satisfy the rojiblancos strategist, Veljko Paunovic, who gave orders to leave a clear message towards the league: Chivas will be a dangerous rival.

To confirm the warning, Alexis Vega (21) took a risk with a shot near the right post that at first seemed like it would be saved but the Mazatlán goalkeeper, Ricardo Gutiérrez, got out of hand.

Andrés Montaño discounted at minute 23 with a shot from the outskirts. Then, Chivas responded in the complement with goals from Fernando Beltrán (56) and Issac Brizuela (75). From the technical area, Rubén Omar Romano lived the match with despair, because in addition to finishing as the worst team in the general table, they also finished among the last places in the table of quotients, which sentenced them to pay a fine of 33 million euros. pesos.

Monterrey reaches mark

If there was a team that could dismantle Antonio Mohamed, helmsman of the Pumas, it would be Monterrey, with which he was crowned four years ago and is now the leader with Víctor Manuel Vucetich. Less than half an hour was enough for the Rayados to seal a 4-1 victory, end the aspirations of the cats to the playoffs and reach 40 points, a figure that only six clubs had achieved in the Mx League.

With a dressing room goal by Alfonso Ponchito González (2), the Rayados conditioned the duel at the BBVA stadium. The ghosts surrounded Pumas and he opened the door to the second goal when an impatient Pablo Monroy committed a foul and Rogelio Funes Mori (15) shot with success from 11 steps.

The penalty was the alert of a recital that Funes Mori would sign. The striker made it 3-0 by rescuing the ball inside the area and finishing off with power at minute 21.

Barely six minutes later, Funes Mori reappeared with another point-blank shot after receiving a pass from Omar Govea. The cats revived near the break with a goal from Gustavo del Prete (44), but it was the only flash.

Thus, Pumas said goodbye to the tournament with just 18 units in 14th place and with 12 years in tow without winning a title. It was the first defeat for the auriazules in the era of Antonio Mohamed, who seemed to rescue the team by taking over the bench a few weeks ago and now saw this duel from a box after being suspended.

As Pumas fell at the home of Rayados, Atlético de San Luis and Atlas secured their place in the playoffs, despite a goalless draw at the Alfonso Lastras stadium. The rojinegros resisted despite remaining with 10 men after the expulsion of Julio Furch (36) and they were left with 21 units.

The people from San Luis have 19 points, and although they are at the limits of the play-off zone, they are breathing because Querétaro, sentenced to pay a fine for being last in the table of quotients, must give up its place to the club that finishes in 13th place.

Julián Quiñones was unable to increase his quota as a net breaker by staying two goals away from matching American player Henry Martín, who established himself as the scoring leader with 14 goals.

Before, Puebla only expected a combination of results to ensure its place in the playoffs after beating Tijuana 5-2, which will have to pay 47 million pesos for being penultimate in the quotient table.

The poblanos closed the regular phase with 20 units and after the equalizer between San Luis and Atlas they breathed by securing a place in the playoffs.

Guillermo Martínez scored a double (54 and 60) at the Cuauhtémoc stadium, while Federico Mancuello (12), Diego de Buen (31) and Martín Barragán (76), via penalty) completed the win. The Xolos discounted with an own goal from Mancuello (23) and a shot from Braian Romero (66).