5 Players to keep an eye on for the Apertura 2018

The LIGA MX is finally back after the conclusion of the 2018 World Cup, and what a better way to start it than to pinpoint the top 5 players to keep an out for in the Apertura 2018.

1. Javier Lopez

Club Team: Guadalajara

Position: Midfielder

Chivas will start the Apertura 2018 with a new manager and a couple of new faces on the team, due to the exits of Rodolfo Cota and Rodolfo Pizarro. Throughout the Clausura 2018, Chofis rebuilt his image and had the best season of his career yet, in where he looked quicker off his feet, more agile and physically stronger. Javier Lopez is jokingly compared to Lionel Messi, and he might have to fill in for that creative midfielder role after the loss of Pizarro to Rayados.

2. Guido Pizarro

Club team: Tigres

Position: Defensive Midfielder

Guido Pizarro left Tigres in 2017 after they lost the Clausura 2017 Final, but he returned not only as the captain of the team but winning the Campeon de Campeones trophy against Santos Laguna. Guido Pizarro had a quick passage with the Club Sevilla in Spain, where he battled to have a consistent season and had many up and downs. This prompted him to make a quick return to the Northern side of Mexico.

At just 28 years of age, Pizarro is one of the top dynamic players in Liga MX, where he can adjust firmly to the tactics put in place by Ricardo “Tuca” Ferretti. Providing protection to the defenders and adjusting to to formations to add flexibility to the midfield zone, Pizarro will be a key factor for Tigres season and add depth to the team.

3. Roberto Alvarado

Club team: Cruz Azul

Position : Striker

Cruz Azul spent their summer bringing aboard an ambitious Ricardo Pelaez, who is placing a lot of his chips on his new signings. One of them is Roberto Alvarado, who is arriving from Necaxa after notching six assists in the 2018 Liga MX Clausura.

Alvarado is a rising young talent who is enjoyable to watch, with excellent skills such as dribbling down the stretch of the field, crossing from side to side, and being effective with his passes. He also had a impressive performance in Toulon, capturing eyes of big club teams in Mexico. Alvarado could be one of the revelations of the Apertura 2018!

4. Eric Castillo

Club Team: Xolos

Postion: Forward

With the departure of the top three goal scorers of the Clausura 2018, many wonder who would be the player to step up. 23-year-old Eric Castillo could be one of them. Xolos admire Castillo’s explosiveness in the box, vivid vision of the game and winning one on one battles against opposing defenders. Placing him aside with Erik Torres could be a dynamic duo throughout the season.

5. Victor Guzman

Club: Pachuca

Position: Midfielder

Guzman is an electrifying goal scorer who caused a lot of attention last year for Pachuca. Before enduring a dramatic knee surgery at the the start of the Clausura 2018, Guzman was the most active Mexican goalscorer in the league, registering 9 goals in 14 matches.

Guzman now hopes to pick up where he had left off and hopefully regain his goalscoring threat. Who knows? Perhaps a return to the Mexico national could also be in the cards.

Which players do you think can make a mark for themselves in the Apertura 2018?