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Game: Club Santos Laguna S.A. de C.V. vs. Club Puebla
Date: Sunday, August 5th
Time: 7:00 p.m. Eastern, 6:00 p.m. Central, 5:00 p.m. Pacific, 11:00 p.m. UTC
Venue: Estadio Corona TSM (Torreón, Coah.)
Referees: REF: Francisco Chacón Gutiérrez, AR1: Alejandro Ayala Valderrama, AR2: Jorge Gerardo Dávila Cervantes, 4TH: Eduardo Galvan Basulto
Television: United States - Univision Deportes Network; Mexico - Azteca 7, Azteca Deportes En Vivo, ESPN Play Norte, ESPN2 Norte
Radio: MoreFM 98.9 (San Diego/Tijuana)
Streaming: fuboTV (Free trial + monthly subscription), Sling TV (Free trial + monthly subscription), Univision NOW, Fanatiz (Check service for available regions), MoreFM 98.9 (Audio)
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Santos Laguna (1W 0D 1L) looks to rebound from a tough outing against Monarcas Morelia (1W 0D 1L) when they return home to face Club Puebla (1W 0D 1L). Santos hasn’t lost at Estadio Corona TSM since a Week 16 match against Pumas in the 2018 Clausura - their only blemish at home all year.
Santos has looked decent despite losing key personnel from the Clausura. They won their first match against Lobos BUAP (1W 0D 1L) but lost 3-1 to Monarcas thanks in part to two penalties awarded. The team hasn’t missed a beat up top or in the midfield, however struggled defensively against both teams they’ve faced. The club will need more than just good performances from center backs Hugo Nervo and Gerardo Alcoba, they need the chemistry between the two to develop.
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Puebla also required a goal from the penalty spot to get their lone win against Toluca (1W 0D 1L), however they were able to hang on against Los Diablos Rojos. Puebla has some good players but can’t ever seems to make the team better than the sum of the players. Francisco Acuña, Alejandro Chumacero, Lucas Cavallini, and Christian Tabó are all fantastic players but all too often the linkage between midfield and forwards just isn’t there.
The outcome of this game will largely rest upon which side can gel the fastest. Santos’ home field advantage will be a huge help for them and could wind up being the deciding factor if neither side is able to pull it all together.