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A final that was dull for 175 minutes was turned on its head late, and Club America have clinched their first Liga MX title since 2005. Cruz Azul went up two goals and a man, appearing to have the title locked up, but crumbled late as America scored twice to force extra time. La Maquina went on to lose the shootout, and America claimed the title 4-2 on penalties after a 2-2 aggregate draw.
Pablo Barrera drew the red card on Jesus Molina in the 14th minute with a brilliant run in on goal. He looked to have a clear scoring chance if he got by Molina, so while the red card seemed harsh for a rather routine foul, the referee's decision was a justifiable one.
Six minutes later, Barrera helped to set up what appeared at the time to be the clinching goal. He found Teófilo Gutiérrez on the right side of the box and the Colombian international striker placed a great finish past Moises Muñoz at the far post. At 2-0 ahead on aggregate and up a man, it appeared that Cruz Azul was heading for a comfortable win.
Cruz Azul made the unorthodox decision to take off midfielder Israel Castro for striker Javier Orozco while up two goals, while America brought in wide man Miguel Layun for defender Diego Reyes, who was playing in his last game for America before joining FC Porto.
While America had plenty of the ball in Cruz Azul's half, the visitors defended well and looked like they weren't going to have much of a problem holding onto their lead. The game was fairly dull until the 89th minute, when Aquivaldo Mosquera gave America a lifeline. On a corner by 'Hobbit' Christian Bermudez, Mosquera rose up and headed in a goal to give America a bit of hope.
Cruz Azul did well to get the ball deep in America's half to run time off the clock, but failed to kill off the game. Just before the referee was going to blow the whistle to give Cruz Azul their first title since 1997, America won a corner. Muñoz came forward and did the absolutely unthinkable, winning a diving header that he directed towards goal. Alejandro Castro tried to block it, but could only direct it into his own goal, putting America 2-1 up on the night and forcing extra time.
The extra time period was mostly uneventful, though Jose Corona did have to come up with a couple of big saves. His best was in the 99th minute, when he made a spectacular reflex stop on a stinging shot by 'Chucho' Cristian Benitez. Otherwise, both teams looked tired during extra time, and produced very little en route to penalties.
Cruz Azul shot first, and quickly sunk themselves. Orozco went down the middle with his shot, fooling Muñoz, but the America keeper had the presence of mind to raise his left leg while falling away from the ball to block the shot. La Maquina's second taker, Castro, slipped on his shot and skied it over the bar. All four of America's takers converted, with Layun finishing the winning penalty kick to seal the Eagles' title.