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Clásico de Mexico: Chivas comes out on top as they defeat Club América 2-1

Club América was beaten out by Chivas who up to this point, was near the bottom of the table. The Aguilas had no answers as their stacked offense was unable to take advantage of a troubled Chivas. That’s the thing about Clásicos, no one knows what will happen and this is one that might just be the comeback Chivas needed.

Not even 30 seconds into the game and Rodrigo ‘Bufalo’ Aguirre already had a chance at goal when he went up the right side of the field and into the box. From there he attempted a shot at goal but the ball was deflected out. It then took two minutes for the Frenchman Allan Saint-Maximin to have his first chance of the night when he stole the ball in the midfield and went towards goal on the left side of the field. He sent the ball into the box where Aguirre was waiting but the ball was kicked out before it made its way to the Uruguayan. The first big threat at goal for the Aguilas came in the 12th minute thanks to Maximin. The Frenchman went up the left flank where he sent a shot at goal but it was punched out for a corner. The subsequent corner was taken short that Maximin sent into the box where Igor Lichnovsky headed the ball towards goal but it went just above the crossbar. It wasn’t until the 19th minute when Chivas got a chance after a long ball was sent down the field where Cade Cowell was waiting but he wasn’t fast enough to beat Luis Angel Malagon for the ball. Two minutes later Chivas had another big opportunity when they were awarded a free kick outside of the box. Efrain Alvarez stepped up to take the shot where he got it in between the Aguilas wall but before his teammates could get to the ball Malagon picked it up.

The game then went back and forth for the next 10 minutes as both sides attempted to break down the defense. América held the possession and were the better team but Chivas was holding on strong. Then in the 30th minute Maximin had a chance at goal but when he made his way into the box he was dispossessed by Miguel Gomez. Up to that point the Frenchman had disappeared compared to the beginning of the game where he was a danger in the box. A few minutes later Alvaro Fidalgo scared the team when he went down on the field with his hands clutching his face. The trainers came on and the Spaniard was able to walk off the field himself which was a good sign. However, it was evident Fidalgo struggled as he was slowly running on the field and his right leg looked stiff.

As the game went into the 40th minute América still had possession but they were not as effective as before. Maximin, Alejandro Zendejas, ‘Bufalo’, Erick Sanchez and Fidalgo had disappeared. The threat they once posed was not there and it was evident they were tired, most likely due to international duty a few days prior. Right before the half ended Maximin created a big chance after he sent a cross into the box for Erick Sanchez but it was kicked out for a corner. The subsequent corner led nowhere and halftime was called. The Aguilas were going to have to reignite the fire they had at the beginning of the game meanwhile Chivas were going to have to take advantage of the errors made by the home side.

To start the second half André Jardine was forced to make a change as Alvaro Fidalgo was not fit to continue and Brian Rodriguez was subbed on. Rodriguez was just what the team needed as multiple players had lost their spark and Rodriguez could get it back. Early into the second half there was controversy as it appeared there was a handball in América’s box. The ball hit Igor Lichnovsky’s right arm but the referee nor VAR took any action and the game resumed like normal. In the 52nd minute the Aguilas had a chance when Erick Sanchez took a shot from distance that went just wide of the net. A minute later Chivas was given a free kick outside the box after Fernando Gonzalez was taken down. Efrain Alvarez took the shot but the wall stopped the ball and it was played out of danger. Minutes later Zendejas made his way into the box where he attempted to cross the ball to the other side but the cross was intercepted by the defense.

In the 62nd minute Chivas had a big opportunity as Cade Cowell made his way up the field and into the box. He was only covered by Sebastian Cáceres but instead of taking the shot Cowell held onto the ball and was dispossessed. Cowell could have gone for the shot but for some reason he held onto the ball and lost his chance. Cowell may have gotten the start but he had not made himself known all game long. He was isolated up top but instead of coming down to the midfield to help win some balls he stayed up top without any action. While the American lost this opportunity, the next one was the one that Chivas capitalized on. Erick Gutierrez made his way up the left side when he sent the ball towards the center of the box where Roberto ‘Piojo’ Alvarado was there to push the ball across the line and open the score in the Ciudad de los Deportes stadium.

A few minutes later the visitors attempted to double their lead but when they were inside the box the ball got lost in a sea of yellow and red-striped jerseys until the yellow jerseys got the ball out of the box. In the 69th minute Jardine made three changes, one of them a forced substitution as Cáceres was forced off the field after he went down on the field. His substitution was no surprise as he has been known to injure himself periodically. While that wasn’t a sub that was fun to see, the substitution of Henry Martin was, as the striker had made his way back from injury. Jardine was counting on Martin to be the change the Aguilas so desperately needed. His first chance with the ball came a few minutes later when he took a shot from distance that went just wide of the net.

In the 75th minute Chivas was handed a blow after ‘Piojo’ went down on the ground after he folded his right ankle as he attempted to make a play on the ball. The player was immediately seen by medics who then called for the cart to remove the player off the field. While the extent of his injury won’t be known for a couple of days, it was a positive sign to see the player walk to the bench on his own after he hopped off the medical cart. In the 80th minute frustration boiled over for Zendejas and co. as the Mexican-American fouled Gutierrez outside of the box. Zendejas was given a yellow card and it was evident that Chivas had taken control of the game. In the 82nd minute the Aguilas had a chance to level the score when Raul Zuñiga sent a ball towards the center of the box where Henry Martin was but ‘Tala’ Rangel stuck his foot out to get the ball out of danger. Two minutes later the home side had another chance when Lichnovsky sent a long ball into the box that forced ‘Tala’ to come out and punch the ball out of the box even though he was in the middle of a sea of players from both teams. América pressed in the final minutes of the game to salvage a point but before they could do that Chivas plunged the dagger. Armando ‘Hormiga’ Gonzalez got the ball at his feet on a counter attack and made his way up the field towards the box. Lichnovsky followed him but the Chilean could do nothing as the youngster sent the ball towards the net and past Malagon’s outstretched hand to double the lead.

After the goal, just as it looked like the game was over there was a lot of chaos as a brawl started between the two rivals. The bench and the coaching staff from both sides were forced to come onto the field to stop the fighting. The referee was not able to control anything and he took out a red card but because the fighting continued no one knew who it was for. Eventually everything was under control and the referee had a talk with captains Martin and Gutierrez. While the ref had taken out a red card he did not show it to any player, instead he gave a yellow card to Erick Sanchez and Richard Ledezma and the game continued with 13 minutes of added time which could be enough for the home side to make a comeback. A few minutes later the Aguilas were given a big chance after Zendejas was fouled outside of the box. The player himself took the shot and the ball made its way into the net after it got in between the Chivas wall that was badly constructed. ‘Tala’ was left with nothing to do as the ball made it into the net and just like that the home side got a foot back inside the door.

The goal lit a spark in the Aguilas who now had a big opportunity to equalize. They had multiple chances to do so, one of those being when Brian Rodriguez found himself with the ball which he sent to Isaias Violante but the shot was blocked out. Rodriguez should have taken the shot himself but he did not and this was his only big moment that he had in 45 minutes as he disappeared the moment he was subbed on. A minute later Henry Martin had a chance but his ball went just above the crossbar. Two minutes later and Martin had another chance but his header also went above the crossbar for a Chivas goal kick. This was the game for the striker to make a big return but he was unable to do so. Nevertheless, Martin had multiple dangerous moments for a player that just returned from injury. This chance from Martin was the last chance of the game as the referee blew his whistle to signal the end of the game after 17 minutes of stoppage time.

While Club América had the most possession, it was Chivas who made the most of the game. Before the match they were in 16th place with only four points but now they sit in 12th place with seven points. The Aguilas should be disappointed in their performance as they had everything to beat Chivas but were unable to win against a team at the bottom of the table. Now América will need to regroup to prepare for Monterrey who sit in second place while Chivas will face Tigres.