Pumas, San Luis Split Points in Ciudad Universitaria

Dream Debut for 17-Year Old Pumas Wonderkid, Amaury Garcia, Rescues Point for UNAM.

The final game of the first round of Copa MX games turned out be an exciting affair between Pumas UNAM and recently promoted, Atletico San Luis. A rematch of their Week 1 LigaMX opener, San Luis was looking to avenge that 2-0 loss at home from two weeks ago. Pumas and their head coach, Luis Michel, were eager to continue the winning streak they’ve had.

Things started off leaning more in favor towards the club from San Luis Potosi. Early in the game they established the rhythm they were looking for and looked like the team that was most eager to secure the win. Even still, Pumas came close to opening up the score first off a header from forward Martin Barragan. San Luis would not let forgive when their opportunity came around however, and at the 21st minute, Argentine forward Ricardo Centurion would connect with a corner kick center for the 1-0. For the rest of the half, Pumas seemed to struggle to create any concrete chances, with those that had the potential to end in success being blocked by “Atleti” goalie, Axel Werner. The Argentine goalie, on loan this season from Atletico de Madrid, would end up the player of the game for the newly promoted team.

For the second half, the local team came out looking for the equalizer. However, try as they might, they couldn’t seem to get past Werner. This was until coach Luis Michel substituted midfielder Juan Miguel for another midfielder, 17 year-old Amaury Garcia. Amaury, a much talked about and coveted product of Pumas now famous academy, was making his professional debut for the “Universitarios”. The wonderkid was able to do so with a splash, as just 5 minutes into his debut, he was able to connect inside the area off a pass from Juan Manuel Iturbe, and with this score the 1-1 tie. Los Universitarios lunged forward following the tie, but Axel Werner helped ensure that the game would end in just that, a tie for both teams.

San Luis and Pumas will have more action in Copa MX in Rounds 2 and 3 respectively, when they each face off against Potros U.A.E.M.