The group stage of the 2019-2020 Copa MX wrapped up this week, which means the teams advancing to the knockout rounds have been set.
In the new Copa format, the knockout rounds begin with the Round of Sixteen and consist of two-game, total-goals series. The knockout rounds will begin in late January, since the Copa now runs only once a year: group stage in the Apertura and knockout rounds in the Clausura.
It took Monterrey 176 minutes, but they did eventually find a goal in this Round of Sixteen series, beating Alianza 1-0 on aggregate to advance in the CONCACAF Champions League.
A 0-0 draw in the first leg left it all to play for on Wednesday. Monterrey came out attacking as they looked to put their home field advantage to good use, but although they had more possession and more chances, it was Alianza who had one of the more dangerous opportunities with a shot from close-range that ended up skied over the crossbar.
Santos Laguna finished off a lopsided Round of Sixteen series with a 5-0 win against Marathón to give them an astonishing 11-2 aggregate victory over the Hondurans.
This series was essentially decided in the first leg, where Santos picked up a 6-2 away win; the Guerreros made five changes to the starting lineup for this game and it did not affect their dominance one bit. They had chances from the opening whistle, but it took 18 minutes to find the breakthrough. Marlos Moreno made it 1-0 on the night (7-2 aggregate) with his header.
Tigres UANL easily overcame a first-leg deficit as they beat Saprissa 5-1 on Tuesday night to give the universitarios a 5-2 aggregate victory.
Tigres came out attacking, knowing they needed a win here, and it wasn’t long before they had their first goal. In the 15th minute, the unfortunate Aubrey David badly misjudged a play, with his attempt to head the ball back to the keeper ending in a collision… and with the ball in the back of the net. His own-goal made it 1-0 (1-1 aggregate).
The 2019 CONCACAF Champions League continues this week with the second legs of the Round of Sixteen.
Mexico’s four entrants had a mixed bag of results in the first leg, with one win, one draw, and two losses, but all four Liga MX sides are at home this week and they’ll look to use that home-field advantage to continue in the tournament.
First leg results
Deportivo Saprissa 1-0 Tigres UANL
Marathón 2-6 Santos Laguna
Alianza 0-0 Monterrey
Sporting Kansas City 3-0 Toluca
The knockout stages of the Copa MX begin this week with the Round of Sixteen. Ten teams from Liga MX and six from Ascenso MX advanced past the group stages and will now look to take the next step towards the title.
The Round of Sixteen consists of a single-elimination game held at the home of the higher seed. If the score is tied at the end of regulation, a penalty shootout will determine who advances.
All times Eastern, home team listed first.
Toluca faces an uphill battle to advance in the 2019 CONCACAF Champions League after suffering a 3-0 loss to Sporting Kansas City in the first leg of their semifinal series.
Toluca started the game off well and found an early chance through Luis Mendoza, but his third-minute shot went just wide of the post. After that, though, Kansas City began to control the game.
The group stage of the Clausura 2019 Copa MX wrapped up this week, and 10 teams from Liga MX and six from Ascenso MX advanced to the knockout rounds.
All the group winners moved on, as did the seven best second-place teams. Teams were seeded based on total points earned and paired up for the Round of Sixteen, which will take place between February 26th and 27th.
Alianza and Monterrey left it all to play for in the second leg of their Round of Sixteen series after a 0-0 draw on Wednesday night.
The hosts came out with a high press as they looked to surprise Monterrey, but they couldn’t do much to trouble Marcelo Barovero in goal. The pressure did keep the Rayados from mounting any incisive attacks of their own, however, despite attempts by Dorlan Pabón and Avilés Hurtado to get the offense into gear.
Santos Laguna is firmly in the driver’s seat of this CONCACAF Champions League Round of Sixteen series after picking up a 2-6 away win against Marathón.
Santos took the game to the Hondurans from the beginning, and they opened the scoring in the 19th minute. Marcelo Correa received a long throw, turned past his defender, and fired past the keeper from a tight angle to make it 0-1 for the visitors.
