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Pumas will have their first big test of the season when they face Tigres in their second home game of the season. After starting the season with 6 points, Pumas fans are ecstatic with the start of new coach Michel but will face an uphill battle against the current Liga MX champions, who are hoping to bounce back after losing their last game against Chivas in a controversial way.
While many people expected an improvement for Pumas with new coach Michel, the surprising start of getting 6 points of out of 6 exceeded expectations. Still, the wins might have been deceiving with Pumas being lucky in getting a win in San Luis, after Atletico San Luis dominated the first half. They then put in a respectable performance over Necaxa, also beating Los Rayos.
Tigres, however, is a very different team, as they are the current champions and overly superior to Pumas’s previous rivals. Pumas also suffered a little setback in Copa MX, when at home they were only able to get a tie against Atletico San Luis, who came close to getting revenge for their Liga MX loss against Pumas. Pumas will have a tough time but the conditions at home might benefit a Tigres side who was riding a wave of dominance over Pumas.
Tigres seemed to have a dream start after crushing Morelia at home but they suffered a shocking loss in Guadalajara against struggling Chivas. The match was full of controversy as Chivas was extremely helped when Tigres’ Carlos Salcedo got a red card after a play was reviewed in the VAR. Being 10 men down was huge, and later on, star player Andre Pierre Gignac got into it with Chivas head coach (and ex Tigres legend when he was a player) Tomas Boy. The fight got Boy expelled and there were rumors it almost continued in the dressing rooms. Coach Ricardo Ferretti must not be happy with all the attention the fight has taken. That said, Tigres is the overly superior squad and beating them will rely on Pumas having a great game plan and maybe the home conditions (heat + altitude) giving a big helping hand.
Pumas and Tigres will be a tough match for both sides. While Pumas has been improving at home ever since the troubled last season, Tigres will be no slouch. While Pumas will benefit from Tigres not having Carlos Salcedo because of the suspension for his red card against Chivas, they will still face one of the three teams with the strongest squads in the league. Pumas has gotten the results but outside of some moments against Necaxa, they have also looked good but not great. They need to look great to face a Tigres teams that has the potential to be one of the best teams in Mexico if not in Latin America.
Date: Sunday, August 4
Time: 10:00am Pacific, 12:00pm Central, 1:00pm Eastern
Venue: Estadio Olímpico Universitario, Ciudad de México, México
TV: Univision (US-Español), TUDN (US-Español),
Streaming: fuboTV (Free trial + monthly subscription)
Listings via LiveSoccerTV.com