Necaxa went out to Lumen Field to kill or die, because there was no tomorrow for the nationals if they wanted to stay in the fight to win the Leagues Cup. The green, white and red team did their homework and placed themselves in the highest spot in group six, in the western conference.
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From the very beginning of the match, attack was paramount for both sides. The Rayos were forced to win, while the home team could better control the pace of the battle. However, both were determined to find the goals that would bring them closer to the goal of advancing to the next round.
Before ten minutes had passed, the US team had already scored twice, although only one had been added to the scoreboard. A run down the right flank saw Obed Vargas enter the penalty area and he crossed strongly past the goalkeeper, giving his team the lead.
Shortly after, the team dressed in green kept their foot on the accelerator and got their second goal, however, after an endless review of more than five minutes, the Virtual Assistant Referee (VAR) opted to annul it and keep the Mexican team alive.
Knowing what they had experienced, the team from Aguascalientes tried to make their presence felt at Lumen Field and still think about qualifying for the next stage. At minute 24, José Paradela, near the edge of the rival rectangle, evaded a pair of opposing legs to touch it short with Agustín Palavecino, who did not take long to decide and kicked from there. Despite the disbelief of many, the team from Necaxán was already present on the scoreboard.
Later, despite the pressure, the game settled into a lower intensity tone, where the teams prioritized defensive work. However, the preference to not concede more goals, a perfect breakaway, led the Once Hermanos to manage to turn the score around, before reaching the break.
A prodigious exit opened the door to a “bookish” counterattack. Jesús Alcantar, number 6, opened the ball from the penalty spot in his own half; in the corner of the area Bryan Garnica touched it towards the center of the field, so that the author of the first goal could challenge the speed of his teammate and compatriot, José Paradela; the Argentine number 10 let the ball bounce and, as soon as the ball was firmly on the grass, he connected with his right foot to leave Diber Cambindo, one on one, in front of the goalkeeper.
Thus, 60 seconds before reaching the 45th minute of the first half, the Colombian killer defined with the inside of his left boot, to which the enemy goalkeeper could do nothing but stretch his arms and legs – in the purest handball goalkeeper style – but without finding any success in the maneuver.
In order to find a tie, the Americans changed their approach to go on the offensive with greater determination, but they neglected the lower sector. The minutes continued to tick by and, closer and closer to the whistle, Washington’s desperation led to the final nail in its coffin.
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Already in the moments of compensation, the squad directed by Eduardo Fentanes planted itself in the rival field and, after some rebounds, Kevin Rosero took advantage to shoot strongly and at the highest area of the goal and finish off the hope of the Sounders.
Finally, that last goal also helped the tricolor team to snatch first place from the stars and stripes and be able to enter, against a more accessible opponent, the round of 32 phase.
Changes
Paul Rothrock (32′, Pedro de la Vega), John Paul (45′, Danny Leyva), Jordan Morris (45′, Danny Musovski), Emilio Martinez (59′, Diego Gomez), Alejandro Mayorga (59′, Raul Sandoval), Leo Uncle (61′, Alex Roldan), Nouhou Tolo (61′, Reed Baker-Whiting), Thomas Badaloni (78′, Diber Cambindo), Alejandro Andrade (88′, Agustin Palavecino), Kevin Rosero (89′, Jose Paradela)
Goals
1-0, 7′: Obed Vargas1-1, 23′: Augustin Palavecino1-2, 43′: Diber Carbindo1-3, 91′: Kevin Rosero
Cards
Arbitro: Oshane Nation
VAR Referee: Tristley Bassue
Augustin Palavecino (62′,Yellow), Bryan Garnica (69′,Yellow)
Classification Group 6 PT PJ PG PE PP 1
3
2
1
0
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2
1
0
1
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3
2 1 0 1 Group 6 PT PJ PG FOR PP 1
3
2
1
0
1
2
3
2
1
0
1
3
3
2
1
0
1
