Mexican Primera Division: UANL Tigres Defeats Atlante 2-0

UANL Tigres certainly deserved to take all three points from their rivals Atlante tonight, but they got some help from the officials that they probably didn’t need. Atlante fans, once they calm down, will realize that they never deserved to take points from this match, but the 46th minute red card that was given to Alex Diego for a only a borderline yellow card offense will still leave a sour taste in their mouths. Jesus Molina and Francisco Acuña were the two men who scored for Tigres, keeping them atop Group 1 for at least one more week.

Atlante certainly won’t be crippled by this loss, especially since a match away to Tigres is one that anyone can expect to lose, but Group 2 is so tight that they could find themselves out of a Liguilla place very easily. With other groups looking stronger, it’s likely that only two teams from Group 2 will be making the postseason.

UANL Tigres have absolutely taken Atlante to the cleaners for 45 minutes. They have hardly allowed a sniff, and they’ve peppered the opposing goal with shots. The ball has probably spent at least 30 of the 45 minutes of the first half in the Atlante half of the field. And yet, somehow, the score sits at 0-0. Tigres have been truly dominant and have done everything in the power to take the lead, except the most important thing they need to do: Put the ball into the back of the net.

Really, there’s no good explanation for why the ball hasn’t hit the back of the net yet. It just hasn’t happened. I can’t think of a single tactical adjustment I would make. If Tigres want to score a goal, their best bet is probably to continue doing what they’ve been doing.

UANL Tigres are in good shape atop Group 1, while Atlante are in a dogfight in the crazy Group 2. Tigres could probably coast to a Liguilla place at this point, while Atlante still have a lot of work to do. Still, despite that, Eben Lehman of SB Nation’s Mexican football blog FMF State Of Mind says that the pressure is on Tigres, not Atlante this weekend.

Alvarez will certainly be a big miss, but Tigres should still have the talent to get a home win. You can check out the game at 9 pm ET on Telemundo, and we’ll have live coverage right here at SB Nation Soccer.

Chivas Guadalajara are leading Necaxa 2-1, thanks to a ridiculous free kick goal from Marco Fabian. The game had settled down a bit after a crazy first 55 minutes, but this one should get wild again as Necaxa will desperately push for a goal. They have 20 minutes to get it, and based on their scoring record since coming up from the second division, it wouldn’t be sensible to bet on them to get it.

Fabian’s goal came in the 70th minute off of a direct free kick, but it was the angle that the kick was taken at that makes the goal so spectacular. The spot kick occurred from at least 25 yards out, and very far off to the left side. Oscar Perez was almost certainly expecting a cross, as shots are almost never taken from the angle that Fabian had. Ultimately, that’s probably why it worked when Fabian hit a curling shot, starting in the middle of the box and curing towards the far post. The ball struck the inside of the upright and bounced in, and the Goats have a 2-1 lead.

I, and everyone else who follows Mexican soccer, was expecting the match between Chivas Guadalajara and Necaxa to be a fairly closed affair and possibly lacking in goals. At least, as far as Mexican football goes. What we’ve actually received is nothing like that at all. Necaxa and Chivas both scored early goals and could have had plenty more if it weren’t for some decent defending and goalkeeping, combined with some plain bad luck.

Xavier Baez scored the opener for Chivas in the second minute, and Sergio Blanco added the equalizer off of a set piece in the sixth minute. The last minute of the first half was bananas, with Necaxa hitting the bar and Luis Padilla clearing an Erick Torres header off the line for Chivas. Normally it would seem unwise to bet against more goals in a game between these two teams, but based on the play tonight, it would be shocking to see the score stick at 0-0.

It only took two minutes for Chivas Guadalajara to take the lead over Necaxa, but it only took another four minutes for the hosts to equalize. After six minutes, we’re back to square one between these two teams, as they’re knotted up at 1-1. Sergio Blanco was the man who scored the goal for a Necaxa team absolutely desperate for points, and they celebrated like they understood the circumstances.

Though Blanco scored the goal - and his finish was great - just as much credit for the goal needs to go to Obed Rincon. He’s the man who delivered the corner kick into the box that lead to the goal, and it was a fantastic delivery. The ball came in with pace and dipped at the last second, straight onto the head of Blanco. All he had to do was jump and move his neck slightly to the right as the ball did the rest of the work for him.

In a game that Necaxa have to see as at least a game where they must get points, and almost as a must-win, they won’t be happy to have fallen behind 1-0 after just two minutes. Xavier Baez was the man who scored, but his job was made very easy by some suspect defense. Necaxa are a team that has been prone to some slow starts, but that usually describes their inability to attack, not their terrible defense.

While Baez was the man who finished, he didn’t exactly have a whole lot to do. The chance was created when a ball was sent into the box from the left flank towards the head of Erick Torres. Luis Padilla jumped with him and got his head to the ball, but didn’t clear it past his own penalty area. The ball fell to Baez, who was completely unmarked. Oscar Perez did well to get across and get a hand on Baez’s shot, but he didn’t even come close to stopping it and Chivas took the lead.

Somehow, after 11 rounds in the Mexican Primera’s 2011 Clausura, Atlante are atop Group 2. Yes, it’s just Group 2, which is a massive cluster of fail. Yes, they only needed 16 points to get to that position. But if someone told me that Atlante was going to get 16 points over all 17 rounds, I would have been skeptical. Coming into this tournament, they looked awful. Their coefficient seemed a bit too high for them to get relegated, but they looked like a very realistic relegation candidate. Now, they’re battling for a Liguilla place. This week, they get a chance to prove their credentials against UANL Tigres in one of three games that we’re covering this week.

Club Necaxa Vs. C.D. Guadalajara Chivas