Pumas’ future on the CONCACAF Champions league is in play when they face W Connection on Thursday. The defeat in Honduras against Honduras Progreso and their victory against W Connection took them on top of the group by a point, which means that a defeat in the final group game will eliminate Pumas. On the other hand, a draw is enough to win them the group and they are heavily favored at home against the already eliminated W Connection.
The importance of this game is highlighted by the fact that, unlike the other games in the group, Pumas will play with a majority of league starters for this game. While W Connection is the weakest team in the group and Pumas is at home, they need to take care of business. They can also take a look back in history to know that it might be a challenge. In 2009, W Connection took the lead in CU but ended up only losing 2-1, with the Pumas winner coming at the 85th minute. Pumas played that game with their usual CONCACAF setup of mostly young players and almost payed dearly for it, something they can't risk on Thursday.
Pumas is undefeated at home in both league and CCL play and they should get the victory or draw they need to win the group. But W Connection might not be as easy of a team as the game suggests.
Match date/time: Sunday 10pm EST, 9pm local
Venue: Estadio Olímpico Universitario, Mexico City, Mexico
TV: Univision Deportes Network (US - Spanish)
Streaming: fuboTV (Free trial + monthly subscription)