Tigres obtain last minute victory in Mexico City

Pumas vs Tigres was one of the most attractive games this week for many reasons as the rivalry between both teams in the field and outside, with both being two great universities in Mexico, has grown in recent years. UANL was coming off a disappointing loss against Chivas and Pumas was on a roll after beating Necaxa at home last week.

Pumas had a great start and had most of the ball control for the first twenty minutes. The home team had many opportunities, but unfortunately for them, Nahuel Guzman was solid in the back, blocking all the shots that came his way. The closest opportunity that UNAM had was in a great play by Carlos Gonzalez whose shot ended up crashing against the post and then out of the field. Slowly through the first half, the Monterrey team evened out the match and began attacking while diminishing Pumas’ opportunities. The first half ended with intense attacking by both teams, while they both made sure to not make any mistakes which could cause them to go into half time with a disadvantage. The teams stepped out of the field with a tied score leaving their fans excited for the second half.

The Mexico City team did not start the second half as strong as the first half but was able to create a few opportunities that scared the visiting team. However, the away team didn’t stay behind and created more opportunities than the first half. Around the 50^th minute, the game became concentrated in the center of the field and a lot of fouls were made. The game’s intensity had gone dramatically down but the match could still go either way. In a very controversial play in the 71^st minute, Jeison Angulo received the second yellow card of the evening after elbowing Enner Valencia during a mid-air ball dispute. The game took a big turn after the incident because UANL was able to attack more freely from the right side where Jeison Angulo left a space. The home team found a way to defend with only ten players, keeping paces close but were not able to hold the score until the end. Right before the game finished in the 90^th minute, Andre-Pierre Gignac headered the ball into Alfredo Saldivar’s goal. Unfortunately for the squad led by Luis Michel it was too late to react and tie the game. This was Pumas’ first loss of this tournament while Tigres returned to the winning path.

Next week Tigres will receive Necaxa in search of keeping their victorious streak while Pumas visits Tijuana hoping to leave behind this negative match. The tournament is still young but both UANL and UNAM demonstrated great soccer and that they are candidates to be protagonists of the Apertura 2019.