Posted by Here are my three takeaways from the 2-2 draw between Tigres and Monterrey in the Clásico Regio:
1) Monterrey Struggle To Adapt To Acosta Expulsion
At the tail end of an open first half that yielded a goal for each team, Tigres right-back Alberto Acosta, replacing the injured Luis “Chaka Rodríguez”, received his second yellow card for a nasty challenge on Monterrey left-winger Jonathan Urretaviscaya. Acosta saw his first yellow while giving away a penalty for a foul on Avilés Hurtado, which was converted to give Monterrey a 1-0 advantage. With his second yellow, Acosta put the visitors up a man with a whole half left to play.
Over the course of Antonio “Turco” Mohamed’s reign in charge of Los Rayados, Monterrey has favored a counterattacking style that maximizes the spaces available for speedy attackers Avilés Hurtado and Dorlan Pabón to run into. However, the numerical disadvantage for Tigres caused them to switch from a 4-4-2 to a 5-2-2 by moving wingers Jurgen Damm and Javier Aquino into wing-back positions. Now, Tigres was set up in a more defensive shape, and began to camp inside their own half, challenging Rayados to play through their compact midfield and back-line. This tactical shift from Tigres put the onus on Monterrey to have more of the ball than they are accustomed to. Although Rayados took the lead early in the second half through a Nico Sánchez header from a set-piece, they failed to create many clear-cut chances from open play, with Tigres looking the more dangerous team on the counterattack as the half progressed. With their place in the Liguilla already assured before this match, if Mohamed hopes to win his first league title with Rayados, they must develop an ability to control the play and create chances against teams that sit back and cede possession.
2) Gignac Finds Form At Perfect Time
Ever since his move from Marseille in June 2015, Andre-Pierre Gignac has become known for his impressive Liguilla performances, with his 18 goals in 26 games helping Tigres to three league titles. However, the Frenchman went into this match without a goal in six games, leaving him still stuck on eight goals in the Clausura 2018.
In this match, Enner Valencia was chosen ahead of Eduardo Vargas to partner Gignac at the top of the attack, with questions having been raised previously regarding the compatibility of the Ecuadorian and the 36-time France international. Such concerns were made to look foolish on 19 minutes as Gignac engineered a delicious back-heel to put Valencia through on goal, with the ex-West Ham man slotting cooly past Hugo González for the equalizer.
When his team were up against it early in the second half, a man and a goal down, a driven long ball from center-back Hugo Ayala caught the Monterrey defense out and left Gignac bearing down on goal. The Tigres number 10 cut inside the backtracking César Montes before cutting outside and slotting a low shot through the defender’s legs and into the bottom corner for his ninth goal in the Clausura 2018.
After tying the match at two, Gignac exhibited impressive hold-up play for the rest of the game, bringing his teammates into play and giving his team an outlet to relieve the pressure being put on their back-line. Given Gignac’s propensity to step up in Liguillas, Tigres fans would not have worried if he had failed to deliver in this match. Nevertheless, a goal and an assist in the final match before the playoffs leaves Tigres’ most important player in form before the decisive phase of the tournament.
3) VAR Can’t Come Soon Enough
In recent months, efforts have been made to implement the use of Video Assistant Referee (VAR) in Mexico in time for the Clausura 2018 Liguilla, with referees in the running to whistle playoff games receiving special training at Mexican Soccer Federation headquarters in Toluca. However, there are doubts as to whether there is enough time to properly install VAR in Mexico before the Liguilla, with the head of the Mexican Referee’s Committee, Arturo Brizio, commenting that the presence of VAR in the Liguilla is not guaranteed.
The potential benefits of having VAR are more acute in a league that has been beset by controversial refereeing decisions in recent times, such as Luis Enrique Santander’s failure to award a clear penalty to Tigres in the last minute of the Clausura 2017 final. This theme continued in this game, with whistle blower Antonio Perez Duran initially missing the foul inside the box by Acosta on Hurtado before taking more than two minutes to reverse his call. Furthermore, Enner Valencia was clearly offside when Gignac back-heeled to him for the 1-1. Although the implementation of VAR has not been smooth in all cases, surely it would help to improve the poor standard of Mexican refereeing.
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