CONCACAF Champions League 2011, Matchday 6: Pumas Win Group C, Santos Laguna Take Group B

Wednesday’s match between Herediano and Comunicaciones didn’t mean a thing. It doesn’t matter that it was a CONCACAF Champions League match. It really did not mean anything at all. Monterrey had already clinched first place in Group D and Seattle had second place. Herediano were already locked into last place in the group and Comunicaciones third place. The two teams were only playing because the schedule mandated that they do, but if you have to play it’s always nice to win and Herediano got to be on the smiling side of the scoreboard as they topped their Guatemalan visitors 4-1.

Comunicaciones were actually the quick starters, getting a Carlos Mejia goal in the sixth minute, but then Jorge Barbosa got involved for Herediano. He struck in the 13th and 41st minutes to give the hosts a 2-0 halftime lead. Cristian Montero put the match on ice just three minutes into the second half, but Jose Cordero came off the bench to add one more just for fun as Herediano got to exit the competition on a win at least.

Toronto already defeated Dallas on the final match day to clinch one of the top two spots in Group C and advancement in the CONCACAF Champions League, but the second spot was still up for grabs. Tauro could edge out UNAM Pumas for the second advancement spot with a win in Mexico on Wednesday night, but it was not to be. Pumas were able to do just enough to pick up a 1-0 win to win Group C and eliminate the Panamanian side.

The lone goal of the match came just before the halftime break when Martin Bravo spotted Juan Cacho and crossed for the striker. Cacho was first to the cross and he nodded the ball home for the go-ahead goal. That goal would prove to be the winning goal as Pumas held on for the victory. It leaves them on 11 points for the group stage, one ahead of Toronto who will also advance from Group C, but they will do so as runners up, while Pumas are the winners.

Both of Santos’ goals came after the break and were pretty, vollied finishes. First it was Aaron Galindo came flying in with a rocket of a volley from 18 yards that went right into the bottom corner of the goal to make it 1-0 Santos. Later on it was Alonso Escoboza who got the goal, coming in with a volley of his own, but this time the pass came from the right. The result was the same though, a Santos goal that pushed them on to victory and the top spot in Group B, while Colorado are now at the mercy of Metapan and Real Espana.

Cesar Delgado scored a 60th minute goal and backup goalkeeper Juan de Dios Ibarra made a point-blank save a few minutes later as Monterrey held off the Seattle Sounders for a 2-1 win in CONCACAF Champions League group play on Tuesday. The win allowed Monterrey, the defending CCL champions, to win Group D. The Sounders had already clinched a berth in the quarterfinals, but would have won the group witha tie.

Until Delgado’s goal, the Sounders seemed to be in good position to pull out the tie and become just the second MLS team to win their CCL group. It would have also marked the first time a MLS team had gone undefeated against a Mexican team.

The goal was Montero’s 18th across all competitions this season and his third in CCL play. No MLS player has scored more all-competition goals.

Other than their goal, though, Monterrey were largely outplayed. The Sounders out shot the defending CCL champs 5-2, putting two of their shots on goal. The Sounders also held a 54-46 possession advantage and were on the attack much of the match.

Alajuelense were in control of their own destiny. A result against Monarcas Morelia on Tuesday and they would win Group A of the CONCACAF Champions League. A win? That would have worked. A draw? That would have worked too. Any result at all would do the job. Instead, they blew a one-goal lead, handing Morelia the three points and clinching a spot for the Mexican side in the knockout stages. Now, if the LA Galaxy win on Thursday Alajuelense is out of the competition, an awful scenario for a team that two hours earlier were in complete control.

Pablo Gabas put the visitors in front after 36 minutes. It was the goal that Alajuelense thought would at least earn them a draw and a spot in the knockout stages, but then Morelia came battling back in the second half. First, Joao Rojas scored off of a pass from Manuel Perez 10 minutes into the second stanza, then Miguel Sabah won it for Morelia with a header that beat Patrick Pemberton and Alajuelense were in trouble.

Plata would add two goals of his own in the second half, scoring with great finishes in the 69th and 80th minute. Dallas hardly bothered to show up for the second half, and it would have been hard to imagine a scenario before the match in which Toronto FC would win so easily.

TFC now sit on top of Group C and await the result of the Tauro-UNAM Pumas match to see if they will finish first or second in the group.

Kickoff is just after 8:00 pm ET from Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas. The game can be seen on Fox Soccer Channel and CONCACAF.com.

In many ways, this has already been a breakthrough year for MLS teams in CONCACAF Champions League play. Not one, but two teams managed to win matches in Mexico and heading into the final round of games MLS teams have gone a perfectly respectable 3-4-1 against their Mexican counterparts so fa.

Just how much of a breakthrough this year proves to be, though, will be determined by this round of games. Only one MLS team is guaranteed to advance to the quarterfinals, but as many as four could make it. In the previous three CCL’s, four MLS teams have advanced as far as the quarterfinals with at least one team making it every year. Even more impressive, MLS teams could theoretically win every group or as few as none of them.

Apparently Brek Shea is the bee’s knees in Dallas. He’s at least popular enough to get the attention of 2011 NBA Finals MVP Dirk Notwitzki, who is going to make the trek out to Frisco to see the 21-year-old MLS MVP candidate in CONCACAF Champions League action on Tuesday night. Shea has had an incredible year, becoming a fixture on the U.S. National Team and also drawing the attention of teams from around the world. That includes clubs in Germany, Nowitzki’s home.

Daniel Robertson of SB Nation’s FC Dallas Blog Big D Soccer and the combination of Dave Rowaan and Duncan Fletcher at Toronto FC blog Waking the Red both agree that it’s going to be incredibly nervy, and both blogs agree that the hosts’ ability on the counterattack will dominate the match. Here’s Daniel’s take:

...and now Dave and Duncan:

It all comes down to this. One matchday left and of the eight spots in the knockout stages of the CONCACAF Champions League, six are still up for grabs. Maybe more incredibly, only two teams have been eliminated from the competition going into the final matchday, leaving us with an absolute mess. It’s the good kind of mess though. It’s the every match matters kind of mess. It’s the kind of mess that leaves us scrambling while we try to watch multiple matches, check the tables and do basic math that for some reason feels far more complicated than it normally would be. Maybe it is the variables? God damnit, x, y and z.

Group A