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America and Pumas will face each other in one of the “clasicos” of Liga MX. Both teams are going into the game with losses but America should be heavily favored over Pumas. Not only are America at home and have the better squad, but Pumas has been suffering from key injuries and will surely need a big jump in quality to remain competitive. Pumas fans would want to look for revenge from last season when America eliminated them from the Liguilla in crushing fashion (6-2 on aggregate).
Both America and Pumas had great starts to their seasons. Pumas was at the top of the league table until Week 4, and America bounced from an opening defeat to Necaxa to win three straight. For now, though, both teams have hit a rough patch.
Pumas got hampered by injures as they lost their two starting center backs, Alejandro Arribas and Luis Quintana. Their absences were felt, especially in their last game. The Universitarios ended up losing 1-0, but should have lost by larger margin.
Meanwhile, Club America lost poorly in an away match to Leon, but they might have the upper hand because of their coach Miguel Herrera. Herrera was never lost to Pumas while coaching America. On the other hand, David Patiño lost badly in the last Liguilla to America and he had to live with the rumors that there might be talks with ex player Jaime Lozano to take over the team.
Besides the importance of the clash, another factor may take the spotlight tonight. While Estadio Azteca is normally the best stadium in Mexico in terms of field quality, Cruz Azul and Club America now having to share the stadium, coupled with the large amount of rain that has fallen in Mexico City, has really hurt the field. As we saw in the Atlas vs Chivas match, rain can be a factor in the game and that might ruin the spectacle if the rain makes an appearance again at the Azteca. That said, all eyes will be on this game, regardless, and hopefully both teams rise above the weather conditions.
Date: Saturday, August 25
Time: 5:00pm Pacific, 6:00pm Central, 8:00pm Eastern
Venue: Estadio Azteca, Mexico City, Mexico
TV: Univision Deportes(US-Spanish), ESPN Deportes (US-Spanish), TDN (Mexico), Canal 5 (Mexico)
Streaming: fuboTV (Free trial + monthly subscription), WatchESPN