Tag: tigres

Tigres goalkeeper Guzman caught red handed in laser pointer hijinks

Guzman’s efforts to help his side were both extremely illegal and caught on camera

Nahuel Guzmán missed Saturday’s derby match against Monterrey due to injury, but the Tigres goalkeeper still did all he could to help his side win during the game.

Unfortunately for Guzmán, his efforts were both extremely illegal and caught on camera.

Guzmán was shown in the VIP box at the Estadio BBVA shining a laser pointer at Monterrey players during a match that would finish level at 3-3. Monterrey goalkeeper Esteban Andrada and midfielder Sergio Canales appeared to be targeted.

Unable to plausibly claim his innocence, the Guzmán instead took to social media on Sunday to apologize.

“As I already did privately and in coherence with the values ​​of the institution that I represent, I want to take advantage of the reach of social media to publicly offer my apologies to Esteban for what occurred last night during first half of the Clásico Regio,” Guzmán wrote in a post on X.

According to ESPN, Monterrey will file an official complaint with the Mexican federation’s disciplinary committee.

Seeing Guzmán get into mischief is hardly a surprise. In just one of many examples of his penchant for the theatrical, the Argentine hid under a tarp in last year’s Liga MX final after he was red carded.

There was also this moment in the Leagues Cup last year, in which Guzmán did a magic trick during a penalty shootout that wouldn’t have been out of place at a child’s birthday party.

“Do not try to understand Nahuelism,” read a post on Tigres’ social media, “just enjoy it.”

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Columbus Crew overcome Tigres, making Concacaf Champions Cup history for MLS

The obstacles piled up, but the Crew’s commitment to its principles set the stage for a historic success

The Columbus Crew did something no MLS team has ever done in the Concacaf Champions Cup Tuesday night.

The defending MLS Cup champions went to Estadio Universitario and secured a 1-1 second-leg draw against Tigres, eventually advancing to the semifinals on penalty kicks thanks in large part to goalkeeper Patrick Schulte’s two saves early in the tiebreaker.

The first leg at Lower.com Field had also ended 1-1, and history pointed to bad news ahead. No MLS team paired with a Mexican side had ever hosted a first leg, failed to win, and then recovered in the second leg to advance before.

The Crew got that first-leg draw without star forward Cucho Hernández, dropped by head coach Wilfried Nancy for an as-yet-unspecified issue, and faced even more difficulties in the second leg.

For one thing, U.S. men’s national team prospect Aidan Morris, a key ballwinner for Columbus, was unavailable due to a suspension. However, the biggest blow came just three minutes into the match, Schulte got the ball stuck under his foot under pressure from André-Pierre Gignac, conceding a disastrous goal.

It wasn’t just that Tigres had taken the lead, but that this goal — a product of welcoming pressure from an opponent, a foundational element of Columbus’ methodology under Nancy — called the entire approach into question.

The Crew had to dig in for a spell, with Tigres sensing an opportunity to put the tie to bed quickly. That’s a long-standing pattern for MLS teams in this situation, particularly after a bad mistake.

Columbus, however, held its nerve.

“That’s the way it’s been since the beginning when I took the team: It’s all about us,” Nancy told reporters after the match. “We respect the opposition, we try to adjust certain things depending on what kind of style of play we’re going to face. But at the end of the day, we try to play our football. And today, yes, I’m really proud of the way we played.”

The Crew began playing its way back into the match, with Cucho playing a major role in a 59th minute equalizer.

A long ball over the Tigres defense left the Colombia forward with plenty to do, and while Mo Farsi couldn’t finish off a pass from the left, Diego Rossi was on hand to make sure the opportunity paid off.

El Volcán, arguably the toughest atmosphere in Mexico, was suddenly tame, and Columbus navigated the next hour of the match without having to suffer for long spells. The Crew would finish the match with a possession advantage despite playing on the road, underlining the club’s commitment to its core tactical principles.

“I’m not surprised to be honest with you, because this is not easy, what I’m asking to my players,” said Nancy.

“Yes, we are [MLS Cup] champions, but the idea is: Is it possible to seek improvement all the time, all the time, all the time? Tonight I’m really happy because, yes, we won. But to be honest with you, PK win or loss, it would have been the same for me. Because they believe in [the principles]. That’s why they are able to play the way they want to play, knowing that it’s not easy.”

With a 2-2 aggregate scoreline and the away goals tally equal, penalties arrived, opening the door for Schulte’s redemption on the night. Staring down Gignac, arguably the single player to torment MLS teams in the Champions Cup more than any other, Schulte leapt to his right on the tiebreaker’s opening shot to make a stunning stop.

The Crew took the lead, and Schulte proceeded to deny Guido Pizarrio in round two, setting the stage for a 4-3 triumph.

“Pat deserved that,” insisted Nancy. “He knows that he has to evolve, and so I’m really happy for him, because I can tell you that he was really, really disappointed when we conceded the goal.

“This is the message, this is all the time, day to day what we try to give them. All the time, try to give a new challenge…sometimes there’s a little voice behind you saying that, ‘No, no this is not possible.’ So I try to tell them that, ‘Hey, [wave away] this voice. Leave it on the side, and just play.'”

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Tigres vs. Columbus Crew: How to watch Champions Cup, TV channel, live stream

The MLS side faces a daunting task in the second leg of its quarterfinal tie

The Columbus Crew have a huge task on their hands in the second leg of their Concacaf Champions Cup quarterfinal with Tigres.

The two sides played out a 1-1 draw last week in the first leg, giving the Liga MX side an advantage as it heads home to El Volcán with an away goal.

Columbus controlled much of the first leg at Lower.com Field, but was only able to score a solitary goal from Diego Rossi. Prolific Tigres forward André-Pierre Gignac opened the scoring for his side with a header.

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Columbus will be without Aidan Morris for the second leg, as the influential midfielder picked up a red card in the second half of the first leg. Star striker Cucho Hernández should be back in the mix, however, after he was held out of the first leg due to a “team policy” violation.

The winner of this tie will face the winner of Inter Miami vs. Monterrey in the semifinal.

Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the match.

Tigres vs. Columbus Crew (Concacaf Champions Cup)

  • When: Tuesday, April 9
  • Where: Estadio Universitario (San Nicolás de los Garza, Mexico)
  • Time: 8:15 p.m. ET
  • Channel/streaming: FS1 (Watch FREE on Fubo), ViX

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Wilfried Nancy can’t make the Cucho Hernandez story go away

The superstar forward missed another game on Tuesday due to a team policy violation

Whether Wilfried Nancy likes it or not, the continuing absence of Cucho Hernández will be a story that hangs over the Columbus Crew until there is some kind of a resolution.

Hernández missed his second straight game on Tuesday, as the Crew could only manage a 1-1 draw against Tigres in the first leg of their Concacaf Champions Cup quarterfinal.

It was a disappointing result in a game Columbus controlled for long stretches, and could have really used the services of one of the best players in MLS.

But Cucho was nowhere to be found. After the Colombian sat out Saturday’s 2-2 draw at Nashville SC, Crew head coach Nancy would only say that he had committed some unspecified “team policy” violation.

After the striker missed another match three days later, Nancy strangely seemed incredulous that anyone would dare ask about the absence of one of his best players.

“We just did a game and we’re talking about Cucho, no answer for that,” the Frenchman said in his post-match press conference. “We don’t play tennis, we play football. Football, this is 11 players on the pitch. Be patient, I know this is your job, next question please.”

Cucho’s absence would have been a story regardless, but the coach’s evasiveness is creating a Streisand effect around the entire situation.

The forward’s “team policy” violation seems to have been at least a notch or two above minor. Missing a single league game is one thing, but stretching that absence out to multiple games — including a Concacaf knockout-round match against a regional power — is quite another.

Nancy will continue to be asked about this issue and the longer the forward’s absence stretches, the more questions he’ll get. Next time, he’d be well served to have a more satisfying response.

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Columbus Crew vs. Tigres: How to watch Champions Cup, TV channel, live stream

Two of North America’s top sides face off in a marquee quarterfinal clash

The Concacaf Champions Cup quarterfinals are here, and Tuesday will see one of the best in MLS face off against a Liga MX powerhouse.

The Columbus Crew will play host to Tigres in the first leg, as the MLS Cup champions look to take a big step toward a semifinal appearance.

It will be a quick turnaround for the Crew, which drew 2-2 against Nashville in MLS play on Saturday. Tigres will have one extra day of rest, having defeated Puebla 3-2 in a Liga MX match on Friday.

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Columbus received an automatic bye into the last 16, and defeated fellow MLS side Houston Dynamo 2-1 on aggregate to reach the last eight. Tigres have advanced past consecutive MLS sides, easily defeating Vancouver and then Orlando City.

The big question for Columbus surrounds the status of star forward Cucho Hernández, who missed Saturday’s game against Nashville after an undisclosed violation of team policy.

Getting a win and/or keeping Tigres from getting an away goal will be vital for the Crew ahead of next week’s return leg at the imposing El Volcán.

Here’s everything you need to know ahead of the match.

Columbus Crew vs. Tigres (Concacaf Champions Cup)

  • When: Tuesday, April 2
  • Where: Lower.com Field (Columbus, OH.)
  • Time: 7 p.m. ET (kickoff delayed until 8:30 p.m.)
  • Channel/streaming: FS1 (Watch FREE on Fubo), ViX

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Campeones Cup 2023: How to watch LAFC vs. Tigres

Bragging rights are on the line as reigning league champions from MLS and Liga MX face off

Bragging rights and a trophy will be on the line on Wednesday night as Los Angeles FC and Tigres face off in the 2023 Campeones Cup.

The game at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles will be the fifth edition of the Campeones Cup, which is held between the reigning champions of MLS Cup and the Campeón de Campeones from Liga MX.

LAFC won a thrilling 2022 MLS Cup on penalties over the Philadelphia Union while Tigres, the reigning Liga MX Clausura champion, beat Pachuca, the reigning Apertura champion, in the 2023 Campeón de Campeones.

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MLS is hoping to make it four straight Campeones Cup titles, with NYCFC defeating Atlas 2-0 in last year’s match. Tigres is the only Liga MX team to win the prize, having defeated Toronto FC in the inaugural Campeones Cup in 2018.

For LAFC, the game will also be a shot at redemption after it fell to Club Léon in June’s CONCACAF Champions League final.

Here is everything you need to know ahead of Wednesday’s game.

How to watch LAFC vs. Tigres

  • When: Wednesday, September 27, 2023
  • Time: 11 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT
  • Where: BMO Stadium – Los Angeles, California
  • Channel/streaming: Apple TV

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Another much-hyped Mexico prospect leaves Europe to join Tigres

Marcelo Flores was a highly touted prospect at Arsenal, but has now headed to Liga MX

The hype around Marcelo Flores at this time last year was growing exponentially.

A rising star in Arsenal’s academy, Flores earned the first of his three senior caps with Mexico at age 18. He then made the bench for the Gunners senior team for the first time in April 2022.

After fully committing his international future to Mexico over Canada and England, there was even talk of Flores making a late bid for a World Cup roster spot with El Tri.

But following a difficult loan spell with Spanish second division side Real Oviedo last season, Flores is following a path that other much-hyped Mexican prospects have traveled recently.

On Sunday, the 19-year-old’s transfer from Arsenal to Tigres was confirmed. The Evening Standard reported that the fee was £2 million.

Flores marks the third young Mexican to leave Europe and sign with Tigres just this year.

Diego Lainez, who like Flores has at times over the years been considered a future superstar, joined Tigres on loan in January. He was followed by Eugenio Pizzuto, who spent time with Lille and Braga before returning home to Mexico this summer.

All three players were 22 or younger when making the move to Tigres.

Amid some criticism of the transfer, Tigres manager Robert Siboldi defended Flores by insisting that the move was driven by the desire for playing time, not money.

Siboldi added that he would not consider the transfer to be a setback for Flores.

“He comes to earn his place, he is very motivated and I am very happy [to sign] a young man with experience, with training from other places that is supposed to be more demanding,” Siboldi told a press conference.

“Why don’t we see everything that can arise? A player comes to Mexico because something has happened, they haven’t had the minutes they wanted. They have the desire to play above the economic aspect.

“They can be at Real Madrid, at Manchester United and not play … it doesn’t mean that if they come to Tigres, Rayados or any team from Mexico that it’s a setback.”

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USWNT hopeful Mia Fishel joins Chelsea from Tigres

The 22-year-old joins on a reported transfer fee of $250,000

Mia Fishel has completed a transfer from Tigres to Chelsea as she aims to become part of the U.S. women’s national team over the next World Cup cycle.

The 22-year-old has signed a three-year deal with the Blues, with The Equalizer reporting that Chelsea paid a transfer fee of $250,000.

After being drafted fifth overall in the 2022 NWSL Draft by the Orlando Pride, Fishel opted to begin her pro career in Mexico with Tigres, where she found the back of the net with regularity.

Fishel scored 33 goals for Tigres in 2022, claiming the 2022 Apertura Golden Boot by scoring 17 times in 17 games.

“I want to become the best soccer player here,” Fishel told Chelsea’s website. “Growing up, this was the team that made me who I want to be. The competitiveness, the wanting to win, I want to be part of this history.

“I want to win titles, I want to win championships, I want to play in the Champions League and dominate. My ambition, just like this club, is to be the best.”

Despite Fishel’s success in Mexico and with U.S. youth national teams, she has yet to make her senior USWNT debut and has only been called up once — in 2020, when she was still at UCLA.

After excluding Fishel from his January roster this year, Vlatko Andonovski said that other players were simply ahead of her in his eyes, adding that playing in Mexico wasn’t harming her chances of a call-up.

“We analyze every goal that she scores, and analyze the difficulties of the goals, and compare to the players that we called up, and try to see how they would fit or how they would replicate [those goals] on the team that we have,” said Andonovski. “For Mia in particular, the league doesn’t mean anything. It doesn’t matter where she plays.”

Fishel is the second American player Chelsea has signed this summer, with Catarina Macario joining on a free transfer from Lyon in June.

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Whitecaps deny reports of interest in Mexico winger Lainez

Sporting director Axel Schuster said he doesn’t even know who Lainez’s agent is

Vancouver Whitecaps sporting director Axel Schuster has denied any interest in signing Diego Lainez after reports in Mexico linked the MLS club with a move for the 22-year-old.

Lainez is currently on loan with Tigres from Real Betis, but he’s been unable to make a major impact with the Liga MX side. Since joining the club in January, Lainez has started just four of his 12 appearances and is still looking for his first goal or assist.

That has once again put Lainez’s club future in doubt. The winger is on loan through the end of 2023 with Tigres, who don’t seem likely to pick up his reported $7 million purchase option at present.

Could a surprise move to MLS be on the cards? Schuster said if it is, it won’t be with the Whitecaps.

“I heard about this for the very first time when a friend forwarded me the message and the tweet, and I hadn’t heard anything about it before,” Schuster said on The AFTN Soccer Show.

“So it would be a big surprise if there was anything to that because if I don’t know, I don’t think that there’s anything to know.”

Asked if he’s spoken to Lainez’s agent, Schuster replied: “I don’t even know who his agent is. Maybe I have talked to his agent but not about this player. We have never started discussions about the player. And he was not brought up to me so far.”

Lainez’s contract with Betis runs through 2025, but he likely doesn’t have a future with the La Liga side. The Mexico international was sent on loan to Portuguese side Braga ahead of the current season, but that move was cut short after Lainez failed to establish himself as a regular.

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MLS guaranteed a shot to defend CCL title after Union reach semifinal

Philadelphia set up an all-MLS semifinal against LAFC

It took 14 years for a MLS team to win the CONCACAF Champions League. Now, the league will have the chance to lift the trophy in back-to-back seasons.

The Philadelphia Union drew Liga MX side Atlas 2-2 in Mexico on Wednesday night, advancing to the semifinal with a 3-2 aggregate win.

That set up an all-MLS semifinal against LAFC, which easily won its all-MLS quarterfinal against the Vancouver Whitecaps by a 6-0 aggregate score.

Whichever team emerges from the rematch of last year’s epic MLS Cup will have the chance to make it two CCL wins in two years for MLS, after the Seattle Sounders made the breakthrough by defeating Pumas in last year’s final.

The winner between LAFC and the Union will likely be facing another Liga MX team in the final. Club León has already reached the other semifinal, while Tigres took a big step toward the last four with a 1-0 away win over Motagua in their quarterfinal first leg.

“The Champions League is a really special competition,” Union head coach Jim Curtin said after defeating Atlas.

“It’s the biggest trophy on our continent and we want to push and try and go for it. Let’s be honest, it’s been a competition that has been completely dominated by Liga MX. We finally broke through and Seattle had a win last year, and our hope this year is that an MLS team can lift that trophy. I’d prefer it be us than LAFC.”

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