América Femenil, semi-finalist; leaves Chivas out with a global score of 7-3

In soccer there are candidatures that are won from the first game. America knows by heart how to do it, it is a case of maximum commitment in a phase that involves risk and effectiveness. In the second chapter of the national league classic, the Águilas knocked out Chivas (3-2, 7-3 overall) with time to spare. That power of someone who knows he is the winner and legitimate contender for the title in the Liga Mx Femenil, where they have already played five finals, caused hundreds of people to jump for joy at the Ciudad de los Deportes stadium.

The four goals in the first leg in Guadalajara were almost definitive (4-1), a loss impossible for the Guadalajara players to reverse. The American team has been certain for many years that this is the place it deserves. The question some fans ask themselves is why they can’t play with the stands full. As happened before at the Azteca, a large number of unsold tickets were left abandoned at the ticket offices. The low demand forced the venue’s operators to enable only the stall area closest to the Plaza de Toros México.

This still photograph does not suit America; it does not intend to celebrate in silence when its dominance is so overwhelming. The Brazilian Priscila da Silva (20) and the Nigerian Chidinma Okeke, who caused Alicia Cervantes’ own goal (39), confirmed in the first minutes that a great hiring does not solve all the problems, but rather changes them. The two joined Ángel Villacampa’s team this year and showed genuine, challenging personalities, with aspirations of breaking the heads of their rivals in each attack within the area.

Where there seemed to be a shortage of tools, the Águilas found solutions based on that tiqui-taca that has become culture. That way of linking passes one after another, as Barcelona once did in Europe, expressed the confidence of a team that is only trying to improve itself. In the previous season, the championship got out of hand in the final against Monterrey, who won the second leg on penalties (4-3) after tying the aggregate in the final minutes. Some tend to look at the past with distrust, but today nothing stops them, not even in a national classic.

Guadalajara, with all its defects, reorganized its ideas when the outcome was practically written. In one of her first advances after the break, forward Carolina Jaramillo sent a left-footed shot into the corner of Spanish goalkeeper Sandra Paños (48), enough to once again believe that things could be better. The 2-1 score was so important that Alicia Cervantes and Daniela Delgado, absent in the first half, tried to go behind their leadership to promote a new match.

Rebeca Bernal, from Monterrey (left), protects the ball against Michaela Abam. Photo BBVA Women’s League

During these bursts of attacks by the Flock, the America found itself overwhelmed. Jaramillo tied the scores with a free kick from the right side, in which neither goalkeeper Paños nor her central defenders maintained effective communication to reject the ball (53). Ahead of the red and white players, the goal was once again the same as before: score four more goals to dream of the semifinals. While the old fears haunted the Ciudad de los Deportes stadium, the last thunderous cry of the Águilas fans also served as relief.

From more than 30 meters away from the goal, Karen Luna saw goalkeeper Blanca Félix ahead of her and sealed the series with a right hand that was high enough to be unreachable (79). Karen has the América shirt stuck to her skin, it is everything the club representssaid Villacampa about her team’s side, applauded not only by the public, but also by each of her teammates on the team.

Given the rivalry that exists between both clubs, the end of the night was marked by an outbreak of fighting in which insults and shoving occurred on the field of play. The Nigerian Okeke, separated by Natalia Mauleón, was one of the protagonists.

I look forward to seeing them in the semi-finals. The most important thing is that they know how to handle the different times of the game, that they manage the pressure and recover well from the emotional moments.Villacampa added in a press conference.

At the initial photo ceremony, the Americanists showed a blanket towards the public with the legend We play against gender violence.

In the other series, Monterrey defeated Toluca 1-0 at the BBVA stadium and, having finished as the absolute leader in the regular phase, advanced by tying the aggregate score 1-1. The winning goal was scored by Lucía García (85).