Posted by Here are three thoughts after Toluca surprised hosts Tigres with a 2-1 win at the Estadio Universitario in round 4 of the Liga MX Apertura 2018.
Toluca Smash And Grab
Coming into this match, few would have backed Toluca to grab an away win. The Clausura 2018 runners-up were without their two most influential attacking players, as Rubens Sambueza joined Pablo Barrientos on the treatment table after picking up an injury against Chivas last weekend. With Sambueza and Barrientos missing, it looked like Toluca would lack the cutting edge necessary to break Tigres’ 29 match unbeaten streak at home.
After going down 1-0 to an André-Pierre Gignac strike on 15 minutes, Toluca got a lifeline mid-way through the first half when Tigres midfielder Guido Pizarro was sent off. Although they now had a man advantage, Toluca continued to cede the initiative to Tigres for the remainder of the first half. The home side dominated possession as Toluca sat back, waiting for opportunities on the counterattack.
Instead of making their man advantage count in the first half, Toluca looked like the team with 10 men. Tigres had the best chances after Pizarro was sent off, with a Lucas Zelarayán free-kick forcing a diving save from Luis García, and substitute Ismael Sosa hitting the side netting with an instinctive half-volley. At the end of the first half, Toluca had recorded zero shots on goal.
However, Toluca leveled in the 53rd minute from their first chance of the game. A delightful early ball from Luis “Quick” Mendoza was attacked by forward Enrique Triverio, who rose over center-back Hugo Ayala. Although his first header was saved brilliantly by Nahuel Guzmán, Triverio gleefully pounced on the rebound, tapping home the 1-1. The strike represented Triverio’s first goal in his second spell with Toluca, having returned to the Choriceros after an unsuccessful stint with Racing Club in Argentina.
Having found the equalizer, the visitors went in search of the winner that would condemn Tigres to their second league defeat in a row. They duly found a second goal on 64 minutes. After he received on the edge of the box with his back to goal, ex-América midfielder William da Silva turned past his marker before cutting inside Ayala with his next touch. Da Silva then curled the ball past Guzmán with his weaker right foot, culminating one of the best individual goals of this nascent Apertura 2018.
Toluca managed to see out the match in comfortable fashion, with Tigres going down to nine men after Javier Aquino saw red in the 70th minute. Although they were not spectacular here, this was a vital win for the visitors, who came into the match after disappointing results in league play against Puebla and Chivas. If Toluca can stay in the Liguilla hunt until Sambueza and Barrientos return, they will be a threat to repeat their finals appearance from last season.
Inconsistent Refereeing Changes Game
This game turned on two first-half decisions from referee Roberto García Orozco. In the 16th minute, Triverio elbowed Tigres center-back Jorge Torres Nilo in the mouth as he was trying to hold the ball up with his back to goal, leaving the former Mexican international with a deep cut. Bizarrely, Triverio was shown a yellow card. Had Triverio intentionally elbowed Torres Nilo, which did not appear to be the case, he should have received a straight red. In the event of an unintentional elbow, Triverio shouldn’t have been given a card at all, so the yellow card made no sense.
Minutes later, a similar play saw Pizarro sent off for Tigres. As he dribbled the ball forward, Pizarro caught “Quick” Mendoza with an elbow to the face. Similar to the Triverio exchange with Torres Nilo, Pizarro did not appear to deliberately catch Mendoza with his elbow. Although the intentionality of both these actions is highly subjective, García Orozco couldn’t have been faulted had he given the same punishment to both Triverio and Pizarro. However, by giving a yellow card to one player and a red card to the other, García Orozco heavily influenced the outcome of the match, as Tigres had looked set to win comfortably before Pizarro was sent to the dressing room.
Gignac Crucial To Tigres Title Hopes
Since arriving at Tigres before the Apertura 2015, no one has scored more goals in Mexico than André-Pierre Gignac. Before this match, Gignac had 71 goals in Liga MX play. Unsurprisingly, given his goal-scoring success, Gignac has become the key player for his side, and arguably the best player in Liga MX. Gignac’s importance to his side was demonstrated by Tigres’ 1-0 loss at Cruz Azul the previous weekend. Without Gignac in the line-up, Tigres did not manage a single shot on target the whole game.
Fortunately for Tigres, they welcomed back their star striker for this match. Within the first 10 minutes, they had created more opportunities than they did in the entire Cruz Azul match. First, Gignac fluffed his lines with a full volley attempt after a teasing Zelarayán cross found him unmarked at the back post. The former Marseille man missed another great chance when his attempt to back heel a low Jürgen Damm cross went well wide of the back post.
Yet, a player as talented as Gignac rarely passes up three straight chances. When Damm put in another inviting ball from the right in the 15th minute, Gignac snuck ahead of Fernando Tobio at the near post, and glanced a header past García for the 1-0. Though Gignac’s influence was stifled once Tigres went down to 10 and then 9, the forward nearly found a miraculous equalizer for his side late on when he hit the side netting with a free kick. While their second consecutive league defeat will generate some alarm among Tigres supporters, they are still one of the favorites for the title as long as Gignac is in the line-up.
Just for Kicks 