🇲🇽 With two matches left in the Clausura, here's the Liga MX playoff picture
How are América & Chivas doing? Who are the surprise squads? Get caught up!
I often hear from soccer fans trying to get deeper into Liga MX. This newsletter, ideally, helps you do that, especially with Monday’s premium round-ups. But even then, I know inboxes get full, life gets busy, a team you follow in another league goes on a great run.
We’re getting to the good stuff in the Liga MX season, with a ‘double matchweek’ this week seeing teams play their penultimate, then ultimate, regular season match of the Liga MX weekend.
Here’s a look at how things work, where they stand and the big stories to keep an eye on:
How does this even work?
Liga MX lifted some of its current playoff format from the NBA, which is starting its own play-in tournament this week.
While the top 10 teams qualify for the postseason (more than half the league), only the top six avoid the play-in. And only the top four will be guaranteed both a spot in the quarterfinals and the right to decide their first-round series at home.
The No. 9 team - currently Monterrey - and No. 10 team - Pumas - meet for the right to play the loser of a match between the No. 7 and No. 8 teams. The winner of that game, which currently would pit Necaxa and FC Juarez, goes into the Liguilla.
The race is on for the 10th spot, but for now it looks like the top nine teams reasonably can expect to play on, whether that be in the play-in or the Liguilla.
Will América repeat?
The champion for the last three tournaments, Club América came into the season as the favorites and has done little to remove that tag. Remember, last season Las Aguilas were hit with injuries and ended up needing to go through the play-in to even get into the Liguilla proper.
Once there, a full-strength América was able to get past Toluca, Cruz Azul and Rayados in the final to lift a third straight trophy.
This season has been much stronger, with América falling off the top of the table for the first time in weeks this weekend after a scoreless draw with Cruz Azul. Concern is coming more from the elimination from the Concacaf Champions Cup at the hands of La Maquina just days earlier.
However, América has generally been playing without a true No. 9, with usual forward Henry Martin coping with an Achilles injury and his back-up Rodrigo Aguirre having suffered a knock on international duty in March.
Reports are that Aguirre could return tomorrow for América’s contest against Monterrey, with Martin potentially back before the playoffs as well.