A 1-1 draw away to Estado de Mexico cost the Eagles the chance to maintain their lead, and Cruz Azul’s loss at Queretaro was their sixth loss overall.
Officially, Liga MX is halfway to a second title. This past weekend saw the ninth matchday of the Apertura 2023, and with it, the three categories of the overall standings: the teams vying for the title, those just making it into the play-offs, and those falling more and farther behind.
There were several intriguing games on Matchday 9, including a derby and contests that raised doubts about the overall rankings. In the end, from Friday night through Sunday night, 27 goals were scored, or three goals each game on average.
America lost its position atop the overall rankings, which it had held for just two days, in that struggle for the lead. The Eagles briefly seized the top spot in the Apertura 2023 after defeating Querétaro (1-2) in their midweek game, but that time was fleeting.
They went to play the Diablos Rojos of Toluca in Round 9, a venue where they have had difficulty in the past, having lost all four of their visits during the regular season. This weekend was no different, with a 1-1 result in the game.
Before the first quarter of the contest, Toluca had taken the lead with a header from a set piece, but the officials chose to reject it for offside without resorting to a VAR review. It was an exciting encounter from beginning to end.
A goal from Diego Valdes, a Chilean who has scored four goals in his past three games—two against Queretaro midweek and a brace against Chivas last weekend in the Clasico Nacional—gave America the lead a few minutes later (25′).
In the 54th minute, Toluca countered with a deft touch play between Marcel Ruiz and Maximiliano Araújo in the American box, which the Uruguayan was able to finish to prevent Los Diablos from losing their second game at home in this tournament at the Nemesio Diez stadium (the only one they had lost was against Juárez on July 16).
Beyond the outcome and all draw no bet predictions , though, América’s departure from Toluca resulted in a negative balance sheet as they were forced to substitute Diego Valdés and starting goalie Luis Ángel Malagón due to injury. At the conclusion of Sunday’s play, the prognosis was cautious.
Malagon, the way we’re working, this may actually occur. We didn’t want to take a chance, but Diego and Malagón are both rather loaded; it’s not our fault that the number of matches has accumulated. We were ultimately at a disadvantage, therefore the league needs to pay attention,” América coach André Jardine stated.
After defeating Mazatlan 3-2 on Matchday 9, the Blue and Whites were unable to maintain their lead in the Apertura 2023 standings, which was reclaimed by Atletico San Luis. With six victories and 19 points, the Potosinos are the only team in the league with that total.
But America is just behind, in second position, with 18 points. Third place goes to Tigres, who dominated the Saturday Clasico Regio at the Estadio Universitario, defeating Monterrey 3-0 and led by French attacker André-Pierre Gignac with two braces.
Gignac’s goals elevated him to the top spot in the 133 Clasico Regio editions. After playing against Rayados, the former France striker scored 12 goals overall, surpassing Mario Mota Souza, often known as Bahia, who had set the previous record with 11.
With a bridge of 44 draws, the Tigres have improved their record against their bitter rivals to 49 victories versus 40 defeats. The cats defeated their neighbors in the semi-final round of the previous season, just one step shy of winning their eighth Liga MX championship against Chivas.
Matchday 9 ended in disappointment for Cruz Azul, who lost to the humble Gallos Blancos of Querétaro at home. Carlos Rotondi’s goal gave La Máquina a 1-0 lead at the interval, but Querétaro scored three goals in a row between the 50th and 87th minutes to pull even.
Cruz Azul’s 1-3 loss moved them even with Puebla in the first-half standings in the Apertura 2023 season, as both sides had six losses. Together with Necaxa’s first victory (2–5 on the road against Santos), this puts the Cementeros in second-bottom position in the standings with just five points out of a possible 27.
Jornada 10 will formally begin on Thursday with Atlas visiting Puebla, but Liga MX will continue on Tuesday with an early Jornada 11 encounter between Chivas and Mazatlan. The Clasico Capitalino between America and Pumas is expected to be the most intriguing matchup of the next weekend, at least theoretically.
Prediction for Toluca vs. Club America
Toluca has won two straight very excellent home games and could provide a tough challenge, but America will be fired up after destroying Guadalajara in the most recent Super Clasico.
On matchday nine of Liga MX’s 2023 Apertura, Deportivo Toluca takes on Club América at Estadio Nemesio Díez Riega. After a strong run of play in recent weeks, Las Águilas are gaining ground on the league leaders, and Los Diablos Rojos, with their strong start to the season, are also hoping to finish in the top six at the end of the season.
While some teams struggle to achieve favorable outcomes and score crucial points that get them closer to their objectives when playing away from home, Club America does not have those problems. It seems like the Eagles have mastered the art of winning at home.
Because of the Águilas’ immense popularity, André Jardine’s team, and Fernando Ortiz’s before that, have been able to make every arena their home. As a result, they have an incredible record on away courts.
America traveled to Toluca with the intention of extending their winning run and taking the lead back into the competition. However, they were unable to accomplish both goals as Toluca tied the game and prevented them from creating many obvious scoring opportunities.
We have to look back to the period from March to September 2005 to discover a similar trend, even though there were only 7 victories and 6 draws during that time. Thus, the run that André Jardine and Fernando Ortiz’s management have achieved surpasses it.
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Club América has now gone 13 games without losing on the road in Liga MX, with 9 victories and 4 draws, including a 1-1 tie against Deportivo Toluca, according to OPTA.
The most successful team and rivalry leader, Club América, is the rightful owner of the Clásico Nacional. The 13-time Mexican football champions did as predicted and won a Clasico despite the intense rain that poured in Mexico City.
With the game so tightly matched, it was personality that emerged from the script for Las Águilas, who were more at ease at home. Brian Rodríguez scored the opening goal of the evening, leaving numerous Guadalajara players behind, only to be seen by the smoke of his dribble.
When Las Águilas visit Mazatlán on Matchday 11 of the Apertura 2023, they will have the chance to continue that streak. The stage appears favorable for them to end the run. At the time of the game, we’ll see if they do.
Despite the tie and avoiding losing, the outcome was bitter for the Águilas, as two injuries happened during the encounter. André Jardine’s eleven relies heavily on two players who had to come off the bench: Diego Valdés and Luis Ángel Malagón.
Just before halftime, Club América proceeded to attack in search of a second goal, and once again, the individual brilliance of their players proved crucial. Diego Valdés’ excellent strike doubled the Águilas’ advantage, leaving Guadalajara well defeated.
Chivas attempted to reply, but they were unable to produce a goal; once more, it was Club America. With a brilliant play to partner with fellow countryman Diego Valdes, Igor Lichnovsky made himself welcome and transformed the evening into a goal.
Even though it ended in a stalemate, the match was just as intense as the previous ones between America and Toluca, which included a variety of goals and emotions. The Blue and Whites, who finished in second place, will be hoping to defeat Pumas in the Clásico Capitalino.
