Cruz Azul put aside the turbulent atmosphere following last Saturday's 2-1 defeat to Leon and the seemingly failed signing of Colombian Miguel Borja to defeat Atlas 2-0, allowing the “Celeste Machine” debuts in the Clausura 2026 tournament.

After their lackluster performance against Leon, the Cementeros (Cruz Azul) came out looking to improve their image in their first match at their temporary home, the Cuauhtemoc Stadium, and they succeeded with an authoritative performance in the first half that allowed them to secure the victory with goals from Uruguayan Gabriel “Toro” Fernandez and Argentine Jose Paradela.

The victory also allowed the Cementeros to end a six-game winless streak against Atlas, as their last victory over the red-and-black team had been in Matchday 7 of the Clausura 2023 tournament when they won 1-0 with a goal from Argentine Augusto Diego Lotti.

Since then, Atlas had been a tough opponent for Cruz Azul, and with that in mind, they took to the field on the terrible pitch of the Cuauhtemoc Stadium, but in reality, they lacked A lot of ability to overcome a Cruz Azul team that, in the first half, gave the impression that its pieces were starting to gel and begin accumulating points to climb the standings. The goals from "Toro" Fernandez in the seventh minute and Paradela twenty minutes later were enough to take their first three points of the Clausura 2026 tournament, where it is hoped that Nicolas Larcamon's team will once again demonstrate that they will be among the favorites for the title. The details: It was actually quite easy for Cruz Azul to take the lead with Gabriel Fernandez's early goal, capitalizing on an error by the Argentine Manuel Capasso, who couldn't shake off the pressure from the Cruz Azul player, stealing the ball to enter the area and fire a shot across goal beyond the reach of Colombian goalkeeper Camilo Vargas.

With the lead on the scoreboard, Cruz Azul continued to press and take control of the match. In the 27th minute, Jose Paradela took a free kick with so much spin that it sailed over the wall and into the bottom left corner, ending a four-month goal drought.

In the second half, Cruz Azul controlled the game; while Atlas tried to close the gap, but their efforts were only a few near misses that Cruz Azul's goalkeeper, Andres Gudino, handled well to keep a clean sheet and secure the three points.