TIGRES BEAT MONARCAS BUT FAIL TO IMPRESS

One week after their loss to Club America during the Campion de Campeones, Tigres wanted to show the league that they are still a force to be reckoned. Unfortunately for Monarcas, they turned out to be their first victim on their way to victory. Tigres dominated the first half and cooled off in the second winning 4-2. The match looked to be one-sided until Quiñones, from Tigres, was taken off the field with an injury and the team could not find openings as frequently.

Luis El Chaca Rodriguez scored the first goal of the match with a direct strike outside the box in the 19th minute of the game. Shortly after, it became clear that Tigres showed no signs of stopping as they landed two other goals in minute 27 from Rafael De Souza Cariocas and minute 34 from Javier Aquino all coming from assists from Julian Quiñones. The Tigres’ playmaker had his way with the Monarca’s defense, and had he stayed in the game (he was subbed early due to chest pains) the final score would have been a lot higher.

The absence of Quiñones proved to be critical as Tigres quickly lost momentum. Morelia seized this opportunity and landed two goals in the second half. Goals came from Luis Mendoza during minute 46 and from Gaston Lezcano during minute 88.

The match was looking like an easy win for Tigres, but then quickly morphed into a competitive and complicated game. If not for Javier Aquino’s stoppage-time goal, Tigres would have left their fan base disappointed and hungry for more.

Tigres’ star Andre-Pierre Gignac had two clear opportunities to become the clubs all-time leading scorer but fell short. Now, this sets the stage for a must-watch game against the Chivas next week for him to break the record in front of Chivas’ coach and previous Tigres legend, Tomas Boy. Tomas Boy currently shares the scoring record with Gignac at 104 goals.