2020 Liga MX Femenil Clausura recap - Week 5

As the fifth week of Liga MX Femenil came and went, it’s been interesting seeing how some clubs have taken advantage of other teams missing key players due to national team duty or injuries to get points while others are seemingly squandering that same opportunity. The good thing is that while there’s an eleven point gap between first place Atlas and last place Querétaro, most of the rest of the teams are separated by only a few points. Eighth place is the cutoff for the Liguilla, and there are twelve teams within three points of that mark. This is good news for a league where parity has been the exception rather than the rule since its genesis in 2017.

Cruz Azul 0, Club Atlético de San Luis 0: A good showing by both teams as Cruz Azul and San Luis earned a point at Estadio 10 de Diciembre in Hidalgo. Both goalkeepers put on good performances and got assists from the woodwork. Cruz Azul’s Karla Morales got her first shutout of the season with an assist from the post in the 14th minute, while Atleti’s Cintia Monreal had help from the crossbar in the 48th for her first shutout of the season as well.

Querétaro 0, Monterrey 2: Another good win for Rayadas as they continue their quest for a second star. Valeria Valdez hit a rocket from distance in the 26th minute to put Monterrey up for good. Aylin Aviléz got the insurance goal in the 67th minute when a Rayadas four-on-one jailbreak lead to Ariana Calderón getting goalkeeper Ivette Alvarado to commit to attempt a sliding tackle. Once she left her feet, Calderón calmly centered the ball to Aviléz, who walked the ball into the back of the net.

nd

UNAM Pumas 1, América 1: A Clásico Capitalino that didn’t disappoint. Marlyn Campa continued her hot start with Daniela Espinosa out with the national team when she scored in the 12th minute. Casandra Cuevas started the play with a long pass out to the right wing to Jana Gutiérrez, who made a move and hit a cross to Campa. Campa then swept the ball past goalkeeper Melany Villeda to put the guests up early. But Pumas fought back and it paid off in the 84th when Edna Santamaria capitalized on some shoddy defensive work by América in the box to head home the equalizer.

Puebla 0, Necaxa 1: Don’t look now, but if the Liguilla started today Necaxa would be in the eighth seed. The game’s lone goal came in the 25th minute when Fanny Grano hit a powerful header past Brissa Rangel. But it was Necaxa goalkeeper Doris Meza who stole the show, making a series of incredible saves to get her first shutout of the season in her second start.

Monarcas Morelia 1, Santos Laguna 0: Monarcas moves back withing striking distance of a Liguilla spot with a 1-0 win over Santos. Dalia Molina converted a penalty in the 33rd minute after a controversial penalty was awarded. Goalkeeper Diana García got her third shutout of the season as Santos lost their fourth game in five.

Tigres UANL 2, Atlas 0: As good as Atlas is, Tigres proved they’re still a step above almost everyone else in the league by beating Atlas 2-0 at El Volcán. Belén Cruz put Tigres up in the 35th minute when she was able to head a cross from Nayeli Rangel in past goalkeeper Ana Gaby Paz. Miah Zuazua added an insurance goal in the 50th minute when she was able to get to a ball that Atlas couldn’t clear out of the box.

León 5, Toluca 1: León gets their first win of the season in convincing fashion, beating Toluca 5-1. Claudia Cid scored her first of the evening in the 29th on a header off of a corner kick. Then in the 43rd Diana García doubled the lead when she was able to get to a long ball forward and hit a shot in the box that beat goalkeeper Alondra Ubaldo near post. Karime Abud drew one back for the visitors after the half when she hit a free kick almost from the halfway line. But it was all La Fiera after that. Sanjuana Muñoz made it 3-1 in the 68th minute when she was played in on goal and knocked a shot past Ubaldo. Ten minutes later, Muñoz would bank one in off of the underside of the crossbar to make it 4-1 before Cid got her brace in the 85th when she got to a mis-played free kick in the box.

Guadalajara 0, Pachuca 1: Pachuca hand Chivas their first loss of the season. Blanca Félix came up huge in the 20th minute when she stopped a penalty by Gloria Narváez, but it wouldn’t be enough. In the 52nd minute Viridiana Salazar got her third goal of the season when she was able to capitalize on a defensive blunder and knock the ball in past Félix for the game winner.

Tijuana 2, FC Juárez 0: Guadalupe Olvera picked up her first shutout since February 4, 2019 when she blanked Juárez on Monday night. Evelyn Fernández got her first goal of the season thanks to a great build up play and service from Lucero Cuevas in the 40th minute of the match. Cuevas then added a goal deep in stoppage when she converted a penalty to give Xolos Femenil their second win of the season.

Next week:

Friday, February 7:

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

FC Juárez (1W 1D 3L) vs. Cruz Azul (1W 2D 2L)

Saturday, February 8:

América (3W 2D 0L) vs. Querétaro (0W 1D 4L)

Atlas (4W 0D 1L) vs. Tijuana (2W 0D 3L)

Sunday February 9:

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

Monday, February 10:

Toluca (1W 1D 3L) vs. Puebla (2W 1D 2L)

Pachuca (3W 0D 2L) vs. UNAM Pumas (2W 2D 1L)

Club Atlético de San Luis (2W 1D 2L) vs. Monarcas Morelia (2W 1D 2L)

Santos Laguna (0W 1D 4L) vs. Guadalajara (2W 2D 1L)