LIGA MX
Late drama as América defeat Tijuana to begin Clausura 2024
Despite being dominated for much of the game, Las Águilas came through their opener to take the victory.
Club América began their journey in defense of their title on Saturday. The team from Coapa took to the field at Estadio Caliente and defeated Tijuana’s Xolos with a squad full of substitutes. The standout player of the match was full-back Salvador Reyes, who scored both goals of the game.
Ámerica leave it late to snatch opening day win
In the initial minutes, the home team took the initiative to win the match but was unable to do so as goalkeeper Luis Ángel Malagón blocked shots from Lucas Rodríguez and Carlos González. The border team persisted but failed to score, and we went into the break level. In the second half, Miguel Herrera’s team continued to press and dominate the game. However, their attackers lacked the decisiveness to score the team’s first goal of the tournament. It was not until the 88th minute when Salvador Reyes struck, carrying the ball from midfield and confidently beating goalkeeper Antonio Rodríguez.
After conceding the goal, the home team pushed their lines forward excessively, leaving gaps in their defense, which were effectively exploited by Club América. In stoppage time, Salvador Reyes again outmaneuvered his marker and, with a shot to the near post, secured a 2-0 victory for his team.
With this, América start the tournament on the right foot, earning their first points, while the border team remained without any, but know they played well. In the next round, the blue-and-cream team will host Querétaro’s Gallos Blancos, and Tijuana will head to Estadio Jalisco to face Atlas.
- 2 Toño Rodríguez
- 4 Nicolás Diaz
- 35 Kevin Balanta
- 20 Francisco Contreras (92')
- 15 Diego Zaragoza (86')
- 7 Alejandro Martínez (86')
- 10 Kevin Castañeda
- 14 Christian Rivera
- 11 Lucas Rodríguez
- 8 Fernando González (67')
- 32 Carlos González
- Substitutes
- 13 Raúl Zúñiga (67')
- 19 Eduardo Armenta (86')
- 26 Efrain Alvarez (86')
- 28 Jesús Gómez
- 6 Joe Corona
- 22 Fernando Valenzuela
- 30 Corona
- 3 Rafael Fernández (92')
- 18 Aaron Mejía
- 23 Iván Tona
- 1 Luis Malagón
- 3 Israel Reyes
- 29 Roman Juarez del Castillo
- 23 Emilio Lara
- 18 Cristian Calderón
- 16 Snatiago Naveda Lara
- 26 Salvador Reyes x2
- 205 Sebastián Martínez (45')
- 5 Kevin Álvarez (83')
- 30 Román Martínez (67')
- 19 Illian Hernandez (83')
- Substitutes
- 17 Alejandro Zendejas (67')
- 197 Dagoberto Espinoza
- 27 Óscar Jiménez
- 223 Diego Esqueda
- 214 Patricio Salas (83')
- 218 Miguel Vazquez
- 20 Richard Sánchez (45')
- 190 Karel Campos
- 238 Adrián Fernández de Lara
- 2 Luis Fuentes (83')
Substitutions
Richard Sánchez (45', Sebastián Martínez), Raúl Zúñiga (67', Fernando Madrigal), Álex Zendejas (67', Román Martínez), Luis Fuentes (83', Illian Hernández), Patricio Salas (83', Kevin Álvarez), Efraín Álvarez (86', Diego Barbosa), Eduardo Armenta (86', Alejandro Martínez), Rafael Fernández (92', Francisco Contreras)
Goals
0-1, 88': Salvador Reyes, 0-2, 93': Salvador Reyes
Cards
Referee: Edgar Allan Morales Olvera
VAR Referee: César Arturo Ramos Palazuelos, Alberto Morín Méndez
Sebastián Martínez (41',Yellow) Nicolás Diaz (43',Yellow) Christian Rivera (78',Yellow)
