Tigres and Monterrey tie in the first leg of the semifinals
Another edition of the Regio Clasico was played yesterday night. It was the 130 edition of the game and the fourth time the classic rivals face each other in a semifinal. The game started back and forth and had the first attempt at the 7’ when after a long pass, Javier Aquino received the ball and served to Nico Lopez, who tried from outside the box but his shot was correctly blocked by Esteban Andrada. Meanwhile, Monterrey had the first clear attempt when Funes Mori got a ball in the third quarter of the field and served a long pass to Maxi Meza who tried to shoot, but ended up in a botched attempt.
The game kept being vigorously contested by both teams, to the point that a feisty Pierre Gignac got a yellow card after pushing the Monterrey’s goalie. Previously the Frenchman had had a small quarrel against Victor Guzman that also ended in both players pushing and cussing each other.
At the 18’ Tigres again were getting closer, when a free kick ended up in the box, Gignac tried to put the ball back in play but it was successfully cleared by the Monterrey defense. A similar play ended up in the first goal of the evening, when at the 34’ Maxi Meza took a free kick, ended up lobbing the ball past the wall and into the net. The shot seemed to be an easy one to solve for the experienced Nahuel Guzman, however the ball ended up escaping him and into his goal.
The Ghost Goal
Monterrey’s goal will be forever remembered as a “ghost goal”, for there is not a clear camera shot that conclusively shows that the ball went in, or not. It is a good opportunity for the Liga MX to be reminded that goal line technology is an important factor in modern football, as it can decide important matches such as this one.
Tigres reaction was rather swift, just starting the second half at the 49’, Aquino and Quinones started a beautiful play between both that culminated in Aquino crossing the ball to the box, where Sebastian Cordova waited patiently having lost his marker successfully. Cordova had to only touch the ball ever so slightly, only to change its trajectory and net it next to the far post, far away from Andrada. A beautiful goal from Tigres, whose players make it look easier than it really is.
At the 57’ Monterrey tried again with a run by Gallardo who dangerously crossed the ball into the box but it was successfully cleared by the defense. Just three minutes later Jesus Angulo caught a ball that had been cleared by Monterrey’s defense, put it back in the box and again found Cordova’s talented feet. An almost identical touch that put the ball far from the keeper’s reach. A beautiful finish by Cordova, who was unfortunately caught offside.
Before the VAR called off the goal, a rather funny event transpired. In the midst of all the emotion of having come back against the archrival in the semifinals, Juan Pablo Vigon kissed Cordova straight in the lips. Their joy was unfortunately cut short.
Despite the draw, Tigres were the clear dominant force in the field. The fact that Monterrey were the best team in the regular season by a healthy distance, was not reflected in yesterday’s match. Truly, this type of Clasico games are special and no statistics or previous form determine the result in this kind of games. Especially in the playoffs. Now the teams will face off on Saturday, with the overall tie favouring Monterrey, due to their position in the regular season.
