Liga MX Femenil recap - 2019 Apertura Week 4

An extremely fun week in Liga MX Femenil that saw a few upsets as teams make adjustments. We’re seeing a changing of the guard as teams like Cruz Azul and Querétaro sit atop the table while former powerhouses like América and Atlas struggle. New goalscorers are emerging as names to watch too, as Viridiana Salazar and Cinthya Perlaza are tied with Alison González atop the leaderboard.

Querétaro 1, Santos Laguna 0: Querétaro continues to prove themselves as being a team to fear, beating Santos 1-0 and improving to 3W 1D 0L on the season. Daniela Vidal’s header in the 75th minute was the difference maker in an otherwise close game.

Cruz Azul 2, Morelia 1: Cruz Azul just keeps on winning. Last year’s doormat is now 4W 0D 0L after defeating Monarcas Morelia 2-1. Cruz Azul looked good value throughout the game, creating several chances and perhaps being a bit unlucky to not have scored more. In the 63rd, Morelia goalkeeper Diana García made a fantastic diving save to keep the game scoreless. Minutes later, Cruz Azul goalkeeper Gabriela Herrera made a diving stop of her own to keep things level. La Maquina would break through in the 70th minute when Daniela Monroy got her head on a corner kick and put it past García. Four minutes later, Paola González would hit a header that rattled off of the crossbar. Alejandra Curiel was there to kick the rebound past García to double the lead. In the 80th minute, a mistake from Herrera allowed a long looping shot from Dalia Molina to pull Monarcas within one. Cruz Azul would hold off the late surge however and escape with all three points on the evening.

Juárez 0, Atlético San Luis 0: A scoreless draw between the two newest clubs in Liga MX Femenil. Juárez goalkeeper Silvia Machuca got her first shutout in four Liga MX Femenil appearances while Cintia Monreal got her second in as many games.

Guadalajara 1, Puebla 0: Chivas continues to improve, downing Puebla 1-0. Chivas registered seven shots on goal and Mexican-American Janelly Farías scored the game’s lone goal when she got her head on a cross in the 42nd minute.

Toluca 1, León 1: A fun game to watch as both teams were evenly matched. Laura Parra got the home side on the board in the 41st minute when she hit a rocket from long range that beat goalkeeper Sandra Lozano. León’s Dulce Peña would tie the match in the 77th minute when she got her head on a cross into the box. There was a bit of controversy late as Alondra Tinajero came out to punch the ball and collided with Peña, While it initially looked like there would be a penalty whistled, no penalty was given and the game would end in a draw.

América 3, Veracruz 1: A good solid win for an América side that has had to face some tough questions over the past couple of weeks about their performances. It didn’t start out on a good note for Las Águilas however, as it was Veracruz’ Paloma Vázquez who got her team on the board first when she capitalized on an error by goalkeeper Renata Masciarelli in the 53rd minute. But that seemed to spur the hosts into action. Four minutes later Dorian Hernández would hit a perfectly weighted cross in from the left side of the pitch that Lucero Cuevas got her head onto to tie the match. In the 65th, Jennifer Muñoz would whip in a cross from the right side of the pitch that Cuevas got a foot on to beat goalkeeper María Ayala for her second goal of the evening. Muñoz would get one of her own in the 69th minute when she teed one up from distance that beat Ayala to the top far corner.

Pachuca 4, Monterrey 2: A statement win by Pachuca thanks to a stellar performance from Viridiana Salazar. Salazar got the scoring started in the third minute when she took a pass on the left side of the box, drove centrally, and hit a shot back against the grain that tucked just inside the post. Ten minutes later, Salazar would hit a pass out to Ana López and López’ one-time shot caught goalkeeper Claudia Lozoya wrong-footed as it went into the net. Monterrey’s Desireé Monsiváis would pull one back in the 26th minute when she converted a penalty. Diana Evangelista would equalize in the 65th when Aylin Aviléz scuffed her shot and it landed at Evangelista’s feet. Her initial shot was blocked but her second made it past the defense and into the net. 10 minutes later, Salazar put Tuzos Femenil up for good when she was able to get on the end of a free kick with her knee and knee the ball into the back of the net. In the 87th, Diana Fierro would put the exclamation point on the match when she dribbled down into the box and hit a tight-angle shot that beat Lozoya and went in at the far post.

Tigres UANL 0, UNAM Pumas 0: Tigres tried everything they could to score against Pumas, and while Pumas has had issues with their defense this season they were able to hold Tigres scoreless. The game was a physical affair, with both teams having to have their training staffs come out multiple times to attend to injured players. In the end though, Pumas got a draw on the road against a very tough opponent while Tigres should wonder why they were unable to get a home win.

Tijuana 1, Atlas 1: At the start of the match, Tijuana held a banner that read “Fuerza Paty y Vero” for Patricia Gutiérrez and Veronica Pérez, both of whom suffered ACL tears this season.

Club Tijuana Xoloitzcuintles de Caliente press release

Renae Cuéllar put Tijuana on the board in the first minute when she received the ball in the box near the penalty spot and fired through three defenders to beat goalkeeper Ana Gaby Paz. Guadulupe Arce equalized for Atlas in the 18th minute when she pulled the ball down with her right foot and then shot with her left near the top of the box.

Bye week: Necaxa

Next week:

Friday, August 9:

Cruz Azul (4W 0D 0L) vs. Toluca (2W 1D 1L)

Saturday, August 10:

Atlas (1W 1D 2L) vs. Club América (1W 1D 1L)

Sunday, August 11:

Puebla (1W 0D 3L) vs. Juárez (0W 2D 2L)

Monday, August 12:

Morelia (1W 0D 3L) vs. Tigres UANL (1W 2D 0L)

UNAM Pumas (1W 1D 2L) vs. Pachuca (4W 0D 0L)

León (0W 2D 2L) vs. Guadalajara (3W 0D 1L)

Atlético San Luis (0W 2D 2L) vs. Veracruz (1W 2D 1L)

Monterrey (3W 0D 1L) vs. Querétaro (3W 1D 0L)

Tijuana (0W 2D 1L) vs. Necaxa (0W 0D 3L)

Bye Week: Santos Laguna (1W 1D 2L)