Toluca had a dream start to their Liguilla thanks to a 4-1 victory over Santos Laguna at the Estadio Corona.
Gabriel Hauche, Enrique Triverio, Fernando Uribe, and Carlos Esquivel scored the goals to secure Toluca a win that leaves Santos Laguna needing to score four goals at the Estadio Nemesio Diez to have any chance of overturning the tie.
The Diablos Rojos needed just 14 minutes to open the scoring when he headed home a Rubens Sambueza cross.
Santos’ equalizer didn’t come until early in the second half as Jonathan Rodriguez used his speed to get the best out of his marker and Alfredo Talavera to score the 1-1.
But Toluca were soon at it again when Enrique Triverio latched on to a Pablo Barrientos through ball to return the visitors the lead.
Toluca managed to find the back of the net again in the 79th minute as Fernando Uribe found a loose ball inside the box following a corner and pounced to score Toluca’s third.
Carlos Esquivel then essentially sealed the tie in favor of the Diablos Rojos when he found himself unmarked in front of an empty net for the final 4-1 scoreline.
Both teams will meet again on Saturday at the Estadio Nemesio Diez.