Juárez 0-1 Monterrey summary: score, goal, highlights, Liga MX Apertura 2022 matchday 14

Monterrey continue to play match-winning soccer and - despite putting in what was far from their finest performance of the Apertura 2022 - secured the three points against Juárez on Friday.

Gallardo goal all but ensures Monterrey’s playoff place

A goal by Jesús Gallardo was enough for the visitors men to claim victory at the Estadio Olímpico Benito Juárez - a result that takes them back to the top of the standings ahead of Club América, who can reclaim the lead when face Necaxa on Saturday.

Monterrey now sit on 31 points, a haul that all but ensures direct qualification for the playoffs. Since the system of four automatic qualifiers was introduced in the Liga MX, the statistics have proven unequivocal: this is the magical number teams need to book their playoff berth.

Goalline controversy enlivens otherwise dull first half

It was an uneventful first half in Ciudad Juárez. Indeed, the two teams appeared intent on sending everyone inside the Benito Júarez to sleep. They played sluggish soccer, as if still tired from Tuesday’s games - yet this did not make much sense, as Juárez and Monterrey had both rotated their line-ups, each making five changes to the sides they sent out in their previous games.

For the away side, Esteban Andrada, Gallardo, Stefan Medina, Arturo González, Luis Romo, Germán Berterame and Rodrigo Aguirre kept their places in the starting 11. As for Juárez, the survivors from the defeat to León were Alfredo Talavera, Emiliano Velázquez, Maximiliano Olivera, Alan Medina, Carlos Fierro, Matías García and Gabriel Fernández.

For much of the first 45, the ball seemed stuck in the midfield, with the goalkeepers called into action on very few occasions. The clearest scoring opportunity in this opening period came in the 40th minute, when Juárez’s Javier Salas de Bravos’s powerful effort forced a stretching Monterrey goalkeeper Esteban Andrada into a diving save just as the ball seemed destined for the back of the net.

Controversy then ensued: had it in fact crossed the line? There was no clear shot where it could be seen whether or not it had, and after a VAR review, no goal was given.

Gallardo grabs winner in improved second 45

The second half had a little more life to it; clearly, the teams had to start taking greater risks in search of the win. The hosts had a fine chance to get off the mark, only for Darío Lezcano to produce an incredible miss, and with a quarter of an hour remaining it was Monterrey who snatched the points, courtesy of an extraordinary individual piece of play by Gallardo.