Liga MX announces schedule for quarter finals
The wildcard of the 2021 Guardianes tournament is over and four teams booked their ticket to the quarter finals that are scheduled to start this week.
The wildcard round took place this past weekend in the 2021 Guardianes tournament and four out of eight teams advanced to the quarterfinals of the Liga MX. There were some big surprises in the single-elimination matches, because Atlas defeated Tigres UANL 1-0 and Pachuca beat Chivas 4-2 at the Estadio Hidalgo on Sunday night.
Santos didn’t have a problem in defeating Querétaro scoring five goals and keeping the clean sheet in their decisive game at the Estadio Corona. The most even matchup was the one between Club Léon and Toluca who tied 2-2 after 90 minutes. The game went to penalties and Ulises Dávila and Joel Campbell missed their shots and the reigning champion ended up losing 4-2.
Since Cruz Azul (1), Club América (2), Puebla (3) and Monterrey (4) were the top four teams after the end of the regular season, they secured a bye week as they awaited for their respective rivals. Now that the wildcard round is over the Liga MX announced on Monday the schedule for the first round of the playoffs.
Cruz Azul vs Toluca
The quarter finals will be two-legged and the best seeded team will play the second-leg at their stadium. The first game will take place on 12 May between Cruz Azul (1) visiting Toluca (11) at the Nemesio Diéz stadium and the second-leg will be on Saturday 15 May at the Azteca stadium. The ‘Machine’ is without a doubt the team to beat this tournament and their goal is to lift the title for the first time since 1997.
Puebla vs Atlas
Puebla surprised many by finishing in third place after 17 match days and their striker Santiago Ormeño ended in fourth place of the top-scores with 16 goals. They will face Atlas in the quarter final with the first-leg taking place on 12 May at the Jalisco stadium and the second-leg will be at the Cuauhtémoc stadium on 15 May.
Club América vs Pachuca
There could’ve been a ‘Super Clásico’ for a second tournament in a row if Chivas would’ve defeated Pachuca in the wildcard round this past weekend, but since that didn’t happen ‘Los Tuzos’ are set to face Club América this week. The ‘Eagles’ will visit the Estadio Hidalgo on 13 May and the second-leg will take place on 16 May at the Azteca stadium.
Monterrey vs Santos Laguna
Santos Laguna finished the regular season strong and they kept their foot on the gas in the wildcard round by defeating Querétaro 5-0. Now the ‘Laguneros’ will host Monterrey on 13 May and the second-leg will take place on 16 May at the BBVA stadium.