Chivas has advanced to the semifinal of the Liga MX playoffs as their undefeated run continues. They are now undefeated in their last 9 matches and have only given up 2 goals in this run. It seems their defensive system looks unbreakable at times.
Chivas drew 0-0 in the second leg quarterfinal match against Toluca and won 1-0 in the aggregate score to advance. They shut down the league’s top offense who scored 38 goals in 17 matches during the season. It was a surprising shutout of a team that had no problem scoring all season.
Chivas plays good team defense and also has a strong goalkeeper in Raul Rangel. It’s a great combination that makes them now a contender for a title this season. How difficult was it in this match to shut Toluca down?
Chivas: Raúl Rangel Was Important
Chivas needed a strong performance from Rangel to advance. It was the way the match was set up with their starting 11, not including Cade Cowell and Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez. They were looking to hold on and play conservatively with a 1-0 lead going into the match. They knew that against Toluca in their home stadium, it would be hard for them to play an open match.
Rangel stepped up in a big way. He made at least 5 key stops in this match that were important. Toluca was the better team in this match dominating the ball and creating many scoring opportunities. A few lucky bounces for Chivas as well were key, with 3 shots from Toluca hitting the post. A shot in the 4th minute from Toluca player Marcel Ruiz hit the post and had the shot gone in it would have completely changed the outlook for Chivas.
Chivas didn’t turn the ball over and played smart in the midfield. Víctor Guzmán and Erick Gutiérrez had strong performances. Toluca had a hard time creating opportunities near the goal as the majority of their shots came from far away.
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Chivas: Key VAR Reviews
As the second half started, Toluca continued their pressure. Chivas was starting to get fatigued. A key play in the 58th minute made the comeback for Toluca more difficult. A VAR review was done to review a foul from Toluca’s Brian Garcia after he stepped on Fernando Beltran’s foot. The referee had given a yellow card to Garcia on the play.
After a VAR review, it was decided that the yellow card would be upgraded to a red card. This hampered Toluca as they now had to play with one less player for the last 30 minutes and needed a goal to advance. This created a scenario for Chivas to open up and look for a goal.”Chicharito” Hernandez was brought in and he struggled again like in the first leg. He had a couple of key opportunities to score on two separate counterattacks and he wasn’t able to score.
Alexis Vega scored a goal for Toluca late in the match that was overturned by VAR after a few minutes. It was a strange play with the ball appearing to maybe go off of Chivas defender Gilberto Sepulveda to Vega which would have negated the offside. After a lengthy review, the call on the field was overturned and the goal was taken away. Chivas will have to continue their strong defensive form if they want to be champions this season.
About the Author
Mike Nelson lives and breathes sports. Ever since he was very young he has also dreamed of covering sports. Mike graduated from CSULA in 2018 with a Bachelor’s degree in Broadcast Journalism. He has been very lucky to cover sports and be on the radio for the last few years with different organizations including a stint with the LA Galaxy where he was one of the announcers for the LA Galaxy 2 team for two seasons.
Mike loves music, he hosts his radio show/podcast “The Mike Nelson Show” where he has gotten to interview the biggest names in rock and metal including Les Claypool, David Ellefson, and others.
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