LIGA MX
Will Pumas fire Puente del Río? Coach “not thinking” about sack after Cruz Azul defeat
Pumas suffered another defeat in the Clausura 2023 on Saturday, but head coach Rafael Puente del Río gave short shrift to questions about his future.
Under-pressure Pumas boss Rafael Puente del Río batted away questions about his future after watching his team lose at Cruz Azul on Saturday.
Late goal sees Pumas go down to another defeat
“We’re not thinking about that,” Puente del Río told reporters post-match. “I’ll say it again: we’re only focused on working hard day in, day out and giving our players the tools they need.”
Alonso Escoboza’s 84th-minute goal gave Cruz Azul a 1-0 win at the Estadio Azteca - Pumas’ fifth defeat in their last six Clausura 2023 matches.
“We approached the game with a focus on organisation, on being well set up defensively,” Puente del Río said. “We executed our game plan almost to perfection.”
Pumas in danger of missing postseason again
Having missed out on the playoffs in the Apertura 2022 tournament, Pumas currently sit 14th in the regular-season table, nine points adrift of the automatic qualification spots for the playoffs.
Cruz Azul, who last month replaced head coach Raúl Gutiérrez with Ricardo Ferretti, climb to eighth place after earning their fourth win in five.