šš²š½šŗšø Made in USA? Chivas just happy to find winning formula
PLUS: A champ in Honduras + World Cup playoff planing in the Conca-catch-up
The path forward for Chivas since the departure of Matias Almeyda has been somewhat obvious. Yet, just because a path is clear doesnāt mean a club will go down it.
Finally, finally, it looks like Chivas, a club that fields only Mexican players, has decided to take those first steps. They are making a commitment to play young players from the academy, and they are becoming less restrictive about the definition of what makes a Mexican player.
With four U.S.-born players in the starting XI and rising star academy products in goal and up front scoring goals, Chivas smashed Pachuca 2-0 Saturday.
Armando āHormigaā Gonzalez, a 22-year-old Chivas product who tied for top scorer in the Apertura, opened the scoring during a rampant first half, and the lead was two just before the half when LA Galaxy alumni Efrain Alvarez and Daniel Aguirre combined for a second.
āUltimately, weāre a team that is clear on what will get us close to winning. The group understands it, they know it,ā Milito said in his post-match news conference. āI really believe in the young guys. Maybe they donāt have experience, but they have extra energy. That energy, if we add quality and talent, which they have, there weāve got good chances.
In a short time, Milito has taken Chivas from a team that looked like one of those touring Mexico legends squads to one that is experiencing a youth movement. Luis Romo is the teamās grandpa at age 30, with a starting XI average age of 25.6.
The Argentine World Cup veteran says he spoke with players like Chicharito, Alan Pulido and Erick Gutierrez to explain why he didnāt consider them to be part of the team any longer. In the winter, he asked for an experienced player, Angel Sepulveda, who always has had a chip on his shoulder and an up-and-comer, Brian Gutierrez whose playing style fits in so perfectly with Chivasā that it looked like he had been there for years, not days as he started and helped set up the first goal - and nearly scored one of his own from long-range.
Itās only one week, but when Chivasā late-season surge is taken into consideration, the once moribund grande is clearly experiencing a rebirth.
Not that Milito is ready to get carried away with being a title contender, or even a top-four lock.
āWeāre thinking very short term. We canāt be thinking about what might happen in two or three months,ā he said. āWeāre focused on ā¦ today it was beating Pachuca, now itās finding energy for the next match. I donāt project into the future.ā
Thatās responsible from a coach. Fans, however, will already be dreaming of seeing Chivas put together a similar performance in a few monthsā time, back where they believe they belong: Competing for a title.
Bon voyage, Joe Benny
A meeting between the two Liga MX clubs he had helped to a title in the first week of the season was the perfect occasion for Joe Corona to say goodbye to the sport.
The 35-year-old San Diego native was replaced by winter signing Ignacio Rivero just before halftime with the game briefly pausing as players from both sides congratulated Corona on his career.
A ceremony at halftime saw Corona, who played more than 250 matches with Xolos, honored. Corona was part of the first wave of Americans to sign for what then was a new franchise on the border, helping Tijuana win promotion, then win the league in a shock 2012 Apertura.
He also helped the U.S. to a pair of Gold Cup titles as he accumulated nearly two dozen caps.
The guys at basketball podcast No Dunks talk about the Hall of Very Good, a mythical place for players who are not Hall of Famers but who were consistent contributors. While Corona isnāt going to go down as a Liga MX or a USMNT legend, heās a player who achieved things most kids only dream about. A title for his hometown team? Playing for his other hometown team the San Diego Loyal? Playing as a pro for more than 15 years? Heāll go down as a player who was solid, who made a positive impact
Congrats to Corona on a great career, and kudos to Xolos and AmƩrica for taking time to recognize it.
The match ended scoreless.
Did Cruz Azul lose or did LeĆ³n win?
Hot off the news that they would be playing their matches in Puebla this season, Cruz Azul went to manager Nicolas Larcamonās former club LeĆ³n and fell, 2-1.
Despite LeĆ³n holding the advantage for most of the game, it was an evenly contested match. One narrative is that this is an omen of doom for La Maquina. My suspicion is that itās an omen of life for LeĆ³n.
Nacho Ambrizās squad reinforced wisely in the winter, adding Diber Cambindo from Necaxa and Sebastian Vegas from Monterrey (via Colo-Colo). Vegas started immediately, while Cambindo came off the bench as the ātwoā in a āone-twoā punch with Rogelio Funes Mori. A healthy Ismael Diaz, who scored and was active in 79 minutes of play, may be even more key to LeĆ³nās attacking fortunes.
It was the first LeĆ³n win since an August 30 triumph over Queretaro.
āIt was important to start well at home for our fans, our families, for the players themselves who hadnāt won in a long time,ā Ambriz said after. āI loved the attitude everyone had, the commitment. Every ball was fought for like you have to in soccer. There were moments we didnāt play well, but when you win itās easier to fix some things, to have better function. Today, it was necessary to win and the team showed a great attitude to get a good result against, for me, one of the best teams in Mexican soccer.ā
LeĆ³n won just three matches in the previous tournament, finishing in the penultimate place. This tournament should bring many more results like the one the club earned Saturday.
Around Liga MX
MazatlĆ”n 1-2 Juarez - Former Santos Laguna and Cruz Azul manager Pedro Caixinha gets a win in his debut, but opposite number Mazatlan boss Christian RamĆrez made some bizarre changes, notably hooking Maruo Lainez in the 39th minute. Something to keep an eye on!
Atlas 1-0 Puebla
Santos Laguna 1-3 Necaxa Watching Juarez and seeing two players manager Martin Varini converted excel even under a different manager, I was curious to see how the Uruguayan coach would start with a new club.
It went well.
Necaxa was up in the fourth minute thanks to a corner-kick conundrum from Santos, ahead by two in the 14th minute after a strong Tomas Badaloni effort & were up a man in the 55th minute when Jose Abella got his marching orders. New signing Julian Carranza capping things off with a penalty made it just about a perfect start for the Rayos - the goal conceded on a keeper error will be one theyāll look at but think they can fix.
We also got double guns from a Santos fan on the official Liga MX site!
Rayados 0-1 Toluca - Toluca manager Antonio Mohamed noted after his teamās title win that the focus this season is on the Concacaf Champions Cup.
To wit, Mohamed fielded just five typical starters in this contest allowing regulars like Alexis Vega, Paulinho, Marcel Ruiz and Jesus Gallardo to extend their vacations (Gallardo went to Chicago, and while I applaud getting off the Miami-Cancun soccer player vacation track ā¦ Chicago in winter? Buddyā¦)
It didnāt matter. Hellinho scored in the 55th minute. Former Rayados goalkeeper Hugo Gonzalez stopped a penalty from Sergio Canales in the 88th and Tolucaās B squad got a road win in Nuevo Leon. Getting late early for Dome Torrent.
Pumas 1-1 Queretaro
AtlƩtico San Luis 1-2 Tigres - Marcelo Flores was a non-factor for Tigres all Apertura, scoring once in 237 minutes of play. He started twice and saw time in five matches.
So, when Canada fans started asking me about his potential impact with the national team, I said it was likely minimal. But perhaps it has lit a fire under the Arsenal product. Guido Pizarro handed him the start, and he responded with a pair of goals that pushed Tigres to a win.
The Conca-catch-up still hasnāt missed a day in the gym
šš³ While most Central American leagues are preparing to resume after their winter breaks and start new seasons (Costa Rica kicks off tomorrow, El Salvador gets rolling Saturday, Panama begins Friday), the Honduran season concluded last week.
Olimpa beat MarathĆ³n 1-0 thanks to a 55th-minute goal from Jose Mario Pinto.
That, combined with a back-and-forth 2-2 draw last Sunday meant a 40th league title for Los Albos.
And just so you know it was real Concacaf action, the lights went out in the 65th minute (at the 10:43 mark of this clip if you want to go straight to the good stuff) getting resolved after less than 10 minutes of delay.
The league gets going again January 24, so enjoy those celebrations fast, Olimpia players!
š¬š¹ The league in Guatemala gets going again on Jan. 20, with a late start directly linked to preparations for 2030.
Hereās Los Chapinesā roster to face Canada in a friendly on Saturday:
There is one change to that list, and itās a bit of a strange one. DeCarlo Guerra, a 17-year-old born in Los Angeles who has played for Guatemalaās U-20, was dropped from the list with Diego Santis added. The Guatemala federation said LAFC declined the call-up - something clubs can do since the January 18 match falls outside a FIFA window and that Guatemalan clubs threatened to do before agreeing to start the season late.
Matt Evans, a 19-year-old LAFC player who already has made his senior Guatemala debut, is still on the list - along with new faces like Hector Prillwitz of Antigua, a teenage defender who had an excellent playoffs.
šÆš² Jamaica is gearing up for its March playoff with New Caledonia and (it hopes) DR Congo.
Interim head coach Rudolph Speid named his full staff at a news conference last week - it includes former newsletter subjects like assistant coach Miguel Coley, who leveraged his time as a Jamaica assistant nearly a decade ago to a long coaching career in the Middle East, and goalkeeper coach Aaron Lawrence, who had been coaching the Turks and Caicos Islands international teams.
The staff has players in camp as we speak, including U.S.-based players Javain Brown, Damion Lowe, Dwayne Atkinson, Andre Lewis, Romario Williams. The group is mostly domestic-based, though, and will play Grenada in a friendly on January 18.
Speid also named 52 players he plans to put on his provisional 60-man squad, due to FIFA on Jan. 15.
šøš· Suriname also is continuing preparations for its World Cup playoff, though weāre yet to hear about any friendly matches ahead of games against Bolivia and, Suriname hopes, Iraq.
The squad should be further strengthened in March, however, with the federation announcing the addition of Leeds United attacker Joel Piroe to the team. While the left-footer isnāt currently starting Premier League matches for the club, he was the top scorer in the Championship last season, scoring 19 goals to help Leeds to the top spot and promotion.
Weāve also been following the situation in Suriname with the federation dealing with asset seizures because of issues with two locally based companies.
The federation put out a statement this morning saying it āunderstand the situation may raise concernsā but assures the public that it is working with FIFA.
The statement goes on to say āNatio can prepare fully for the upcoming FIFA playoffs.ā
There were rumors, especially from Honduras and Costa Rica, which seemed hopeful there would be a place opened up and a Central American team gifted the spot. But that does not look at all likely (nor did it ever).
Suriname also conducted its official unveiling of new manager Henk ten Cate on Monday.
The news emerging from that press conference is that Suriname is hopeful to have a decision from the Court of Arbitration for Sport on Danilho Doekhi, the Union Berlin center back whose attempt to join Suriname was rejected by FIFA, by the first week of February.
Should Doekhi be ruled eligible, Ten Cate noted āthe floodgatesā will open when it comes to additional commitments. As it stands, Piroe and Melayro Bogarde are the new faces.
Letās call it there and pick back up tomorrow when Iāll have an interview with a player taking part in the World Cup playoff!