From scare to glory: Cruz Azul avoids the 'cruzazuleada' in the premiere of its title
Atlético San Luis had the champion Cruz Azul on the canvas with a clear 2-0, but could not maintain the rhythm and allowed the Machine to avoid the 2-3 cross.
Cruz Azul, current Liga MX champion, went from the sublime to the ridiculous and vice versa to prevent the first great tragedy in the premiere of their crown. The Celeste Machine snatched a spectacular 2-3 victory from Atlético San Luis in a match where they went from forgiving a rout to coming back in the last breath.
The cement “harakiri” in the first half
The squad led by Joel Huiqui paid dearly for their lack of forcefulness in the first half, wasting at least three clear goal options. Two of them passed through the feet of Carlos Rodolfo Rotondi – the current hero of the light blues in obtaining the tenth star – who even crashed a shot against the crossbar.
The other monumental mistake came at the expense of Nigerian reinforcement Christian Ebere, who missed a goal in the six-yard box by not correctly defining a comfortable ball. Cruz Azul forgave and let live some locals who would have no mercy in the complement. Five minutes of Potosí nightmare
At the dawn of the second half, Atlético San Luis gave the champions a tremendous locker room knockout. Just in the 46th minute, Frenchman Sébastien Salles-Lamonge hit a volley to open the scoring. Just four minutes later, at 50', Spaniard Rafa Llorente took advantage of a lack of communication in the cement defense to beat Kevin Mier with a cross shot and make it 2-0.
With water up to their necks, the ghosts of the past appeared at the Alfonso Lastras Stadium; The shadow of a new “cruzazuleada” and the premature dent of the crown were beginning to be felt in Potosí territory. The bench to the rescue and the Jeremy Márquez show
To avoid disaster, the coaching staff used its extensive roster and brought in Gabriel “Toro” Fernández and Luka Romero. The shock was immediate. At minute 63, after a VAR review for a foul on Paradela, “Toro” Fernández impeccably executed a penalty to shorten the distance and start the celestial rebellion.
The epic was consummated thanks to Ángel Jeremy Márquez. The Guadalajara midfielder dressed as an absolute hero: first at minute 81, scoring the tie after an assist from Romero, and later at 90 3', pushing an agonizing ball to seal the final 2-3.
With this triumph as a true champion, Cruz Azul added its first three points of the competition and demonstrated that the hierarchy of its squad is intact.