Decision on Puebla’s illegal line-up against Xolos: how will affect both team’s final position in the table?

Controversy reared its head once again in the Liga MX - concerning the Week 7 meeting between Puebla and Tijuana, an issue which has yet to be resolved. The Camoteros won the game 3-0 but the victory was declared void and three points were given to the visitors due to an improper line-up on the official team sheet.

Ricardo Carbajal was appointed on an interim basis following Eduardo Arce’s dismissal at the end of August. However, Under-14s coach Luis Noriega was present on the bench in the game against Tijuana when, in the eyes of the league, he was not authorized to be there.

As a result, the Mexican Football Federation decided to take the three points from Puebla and award them to Miguel Herrera’s team. The case was heard by the Court of Arbitration for Sports (TAS), which will give its verdict this week, ahead of the Week 17 fixtures when the regular phase of the Apertura reaches its conclusion.

The FMF announced the list of hearings scheduled for this week, among them is the one regarding the Puebla vs Xolos match. The final decision will be given tomorrow, Tuesday 7 November, and in the event that the TAS resolves in favor of the Camoteros, the Mexican Football Federation will have to return the three points to Puebla.

If that happens, obviously it could seriously affect the Apertura 2023 table. The Xolos are currently seventh on 23 points and are within the playoff positions. Puebla meanwhile are 12th, one of three teams on 19 points heading into the final game of the regular season. A reversal of the decision would give Puebla 22 points and move them into the Play-In zone while Tijuana would slip down to 11th with qualification to the post-season depending on results elsewhere.