2017 Apertura Copa MX match recap: Club Tijuana 0, Atlante 0

Club Tijuana and Atlante played to a 0-0 draw in front of 24,333 fans - a great crowd for a Tuesday night. The result puts the Copa MX hopes of all Group 3 clubs up in the air pending the outcome of the final match between Atlante and Puebla.

Neither side came out particularly strong. Xolos had the better chances early, however the first couple of shots were taken from long range and went well over the crossbar.

In the 16th minute, a Juan Abarca foul deep lead to a Xolos free kick. Juan Iturbe hit the free kick, and it looked like Henry Martin got a touch on it as it went into the box, pushing the ball out wide toward the right. Center back Hiram Munoz got a touch on the ball, however it hit off of the outside of the post.

In the 26th minute, Matias Pisano hit a drive from deep that just missed the net wide. Iturbe had a decent shot in the 42nd minute that Potros goalkeeper Eduardo Bravo made a solid diving stop on.

The second half saw Xolos taking more shots at goal, however most were from long range with little chance of bothering Bravo. Xolos had a possible penalty not called when players got tangled in the box.

Moments later, a Xolos goal by Juan Iturbe was (correctly) called offside. Then as if to tease the home side even more, Alejandro Guido was in alone on Eduardo Bravo and tried to chip the goalkeeper, however Bravo was able to easily gather the shot.

The match was a gritty, hard-fought affair with the visitors picking up four yellow cards and many more fouls committed. At one point, Alejandro Donatti and Felipe Reynero were jawing at one another and had to be separated by the referee and respective teammates.

In the dying moments of the match, Gustavo Bou had a chance at glory but his shot was tipped over by Bravo. On the ensuing corner kick, it appeared as if an Atlante player hit the ball with an outstretched arm, but no penalty was awarded.

With the draw, Xolos are no longer assured of progressing in the Copa MX tournament and must wait on the results of not only the Puebla - Atlante match in Cancun on September 13 but the results of other matches as well to see if they’re one of the top seven second place teams.

Club Tijuana: Jose Antonio Rodriguez; Damian Perez, Alejandro Donatti, Hiram Munoz, Juan Carlos Nunez; Enzo Kalinski, Alejandro Guido (Victor Malcorra - 79’); Joe Corona, Juan Iturbe; Matias Pisano (Gustavo Bou - 73’), Henry Martin (Juan Lucero - 63’)

Atlante: Eduardo Bravo; Alfonso Luna, Gabriel Espana, Francisco Flores, Irving Zurita, Juan Abarca; Fernando Herrera, Felipe Reynero (Ernesto Reyes - 73’), Daniel Hernandez, David Izazola (Cristian Tarragona - 89’); Marcelo Gracia (Carlos Cauich - 83’)

Scoring: Club Tijuana - None; Atlante - None

Disciplinary: Club Tijuana - Matias Pisano (Yellow - 22’); Atlante - Irving Zurita (Yellow - 19’), Juan Abarca (Yellow - 38’), Gabriel Espana (Yellow - 66’), Daniel Hernandez (Yellow - 82’)