Posted by Here are my three takeaways from Toluca’s 3-0 win against Veracruz:
1) Toluca Plays Within Themselves But Still Wins Comfortably
Los Diablos Rojos entered this match looking to become the first team to win nine consecutive Liga MX matches since the switch to short seasons in 1996. Although this run has included impressive victories away to Pumas and América in back-to-back rounds, Toluca’s home form has been the key reason why they have already wrapped up the first seed in the Liguilla (Superliderato).
The Estadio Nemesio Diez, which reopened in 2017, is located at a higher altitude than any other stadium in the Mexican first division. The thin air, coupled with the fact that Toluca plays all their home games at noon, creates a physical challenge for visiting teams. Toluca also possesses quality players such as Rubens Sambueza and Luis Quiñones and a coach, legendary former Escarlata goalkeeper Hernan Cristante, who is getting the most out of a squad full of volatile personalities.
Cristante lined up his team in their habitual 4-2-3-1 here, with the Argentinean Gabriel Hauche replacing the injured Sambueza as one of the three players behind forward Alexis Canelo. After going 1-0 up through Pablo Barrientos’ fortuitous free kick on a mistake by Veracruz keeper Melitón Hernández, Toluca controlled possession but was not particularly ambitious until two late goals from right-back Rodrigo Salinas added some gloss to the scoreline. While Toluca will come up against stronger competition in the Liguilla than a poor Veracruz side, the return of their best player and creative spark Sambueza, who forms a dangerous creative trident with Quiñones and Barrientos, gives Red Devils fans hope of their first league title since the Bicentario 2010.
2) Tactical Indecision From Vazquez Creates Midfield Problems For Tiburones
After a 4-0 loss at Monterrey by relegation rivals Lobos BUAP the previous day guaranteed Veracruz’s safety, and with the team maintaining remote chances of Liguilla qualification, there was intrigue regarding the tactical set-up that manager Guillermo Vazquez would use for this game. Throughout the season, Vazquez had favored a defensive-minded set-up, with the team sitting deep in two banks of four and playing on the counterattack. This set-up involved the employment of two defensive midfielders, but here Vazquez paired Luis Antonio Martínez with Carlos Esquivel, a player more accustomed to floating into spaces as a number 10 than carrying water. However, Esquivel’s deployment in the center of midfield did not provoke a more attacking outlook from Tiburones, as they reverted to their habitual two banks of four, looking to spring out on the counterattack from any mistakes by the home team. As a result, Veracruz was overrun in midfield as Barrientos worked with deep-lying midfielders Leonel Lopéz and Antonio Ríos to create a numerical advantage for Toluca in that zone, leaving the visitors few opportunities to win the ball back in dangerous attacking positions.
3) Veracruz Safe, But What Now?
Coming into the Clausura 2018, Veracruz seemed doomed to relegation from the first division, with their two closest relegation competitors, Queretaro and Atlas, 8 and 14 points better off respectively. However, a dismal campaign from Liga MX debutants Lobos BUAP, which has seen them collect only 8 points from 16 games, has ensured Veracruz’s spot in the first division.
Although a loss against León in the previous match day before the Toluca game had cut a run of three straight wins for Veracruz, the match in the Nemesio Diez highlighted the lack of quality present in the squad. While Veracruz played a reactive game, they still did not win their first corner kick until the 77th minute, with Daniel Villalva’s trickery from the left flank presenting the only danger to the home defense.
Back in March, and with the threat of relegation still looming, team owner Fidel Kuri said he would pay the 120 million Mexican pesos (about 6.3 million US dollars) required to keep the team in the Liga MX if their relegation had been confirmed and the promotion candidate from the second division Acenso MX did not comply with the requirements to play in the first division. If Kuri chooses to invest that money in new players for next season, Veracruz will have a much better chance of Liguilla qualification. However, with relegation from the Liga MX suspended for the next two years, there is less impetus for Kuri to do so. Therefore, in all likelihood we will continue to see Tiburones Rojos near the foot of the table in seasons to come.
Just for Kicks 