Morelia wins, gives boost to Club America
Say one thing about Club America fans, they do appreciate a helping hand.
When the players from Morelia walked off the field at the Home Depot Center on Wednesday night, having thrashed UAG Tecos, 3-1, in the first half of an InterLiga soccer doubleheader, the Club America faithful saluted them long and loud.
The reason was simple: By defeating Tecos, Morelia had saved Club America the necessity of beating Jaguares de Chiapas in the second game in order to advance to Saturday’s tournament finals. The Aguilas (or Eagles, as they are known) already had enough points.
Not that it mattered in the end. Encouraged by their yellow-clad, drum-beating, firework-firing supporters who made up the vast majority of the crowd of 19,405, Club America rolled to a 1-0 victory behind an excellent goal by Nelson Cuevas in the 70th minute.
Cuevas began and ended the move, exchanging a give-and-go series of passes with midfielder Juan Mosqueda and then sliding an angled shot into the net with the outside of his right foot, the ball going in off the foot of the right post.
Ten minutes later, Jaguares defender Heriberto Morales was ejected by referee Kevin Stott for throwing an elbow that floored Cuevas.
Club America, the reigning club champion of soccer’s North and Central American and Caribbean (CONCACAF) region, is trying to qualify for the Copa America, South America’s premier club event, for the fifth time. A win over Tigres UANL in Saturday’s 7:15 p.m. game will get it there.
In Saturday’s first final, Necaxa will play Tecos at 5 p.m.
Tecos had needed to win the first game of the evening but things went wrong from the start.
Morelia, which had lost its first two games and was mathematically eliminated from advancing, took the lead 7 minutes 35 seconds in on a header by Luis Rey off a cross from the right by fellow forward Nicolas Pavlovich.
Goalkeeper Jose De Jesus Corona, who had just made a diving save on a low shot, was left stranded and could only watch as the ball went in at the far post.
Morelia continued to apply the pressure and kept Corona busy. He was beaten again, however, at 24:27 on a heads-up bit of combination play by Morelia.
A long pass found Rey on the left flank, he passed inside to Ignacio Carrasco, whose shot from close range was blocked by Corona. The ball fell free and Pavlovich side-footed it into the net from a few yards.
A defensive miscue allowed Tecos back into the game five minutes later, however.
Rodrigo Ruiz swung a corner kick in from the right and a looping header by Juan Leano sailed over goalkeeper Moises Munoz and dropped in below the bar. Morelia might have prevented the goal had it had a defender on the goal line, but it did not.
Rey scored a second goal in the final minute.
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On Wednesday morning, Mexico announced that it would play two games in California after its Feb. 7 match against the U.S. in Phoenix. Coach Hugo Sanchez’s squad will play Venezuela in San Diego on Feb. 28 and Ecuador in Oakland on March 28.
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Final four
Profiles of the four teams that will play in Saturday’s finals of the InterLiga:
* Necaxa, which calls Aguascalientes home, has a South American flavor with three Brazilians in its starting lineup, including forward and tournament joint leading scorer Kleber, along with midfielders Fabiano and Everaldo Barbosa.
* Club America will have the mercurial Cuauhtemoc Blanco back for Saturday’s finals after the Mexico national team standout was suspended from Wednesday’s game. Like Kleber, he has three goals.
* Tigres UANL, named after the National Autonomous University of Nuevo Leon, won the tournament in 2005 and 2006 and is led by the charismatic forward Walter Gaitan, who has scored two goals in the 2007 InterLiga.
* Tecos UAG, Guadalajara’s “other” team, living in the shadow of current Mexico league champion Chivas de Guadalajara, is making its InterLiga debut in this tournament but has reached the final four.
--GRAHAME L. JONES
