Liga MX Femenil never disappoints when it comes to finals, and this time was no exception. Rayadas de Monterrey had the chance to win its fifth star while Club América was pushing for its third.
The preview
Rayadas came to this match having won the first leg 1-0. América had its chances but couldn’t
find the back of the net, while Monterrey maybe could’ve scored one more but at the end of the day, only Alice Soto was able to beat goalkeeper Sandra Paños.
It all comes down to this…
The general consensus was Rayadas had things under control, being the second-most winningest team in Mexico and having the aggregate in its favor.
On the other hand, América’s fans were nervous and tried not to be too optimistic since the team had a record of losing finals. In this case, they were one goal down and even though it wasn’t impossible to reverse, it added to the whole atmosphere.
Despite that, fans knew the importance of showing up and therefore, they showed up in numbers. At the end of the game, it was announced that 26,670 were present at Ciudad de los Deportes stadium.
With the fans behind them, América started to push early for that equalizer. They found it through Montse Saldívar before the 10th minute. Nonetheless, VAR intervened and the goal was disallowed due to a previous foul.
They continued to attack over and over. It was midfielder Irene Guerrero who tapped the ball to level the proceedings.
Brazilian international and former Manchester United Geyse enjoyed herself the entire game and capitalized on goalkeeper Paola Manrique’s mistake only five minutes into the second half. That goal allowed América to balance things in its favor and play without feeling the pressure of the score.
However, they wanted to secure the title and so kept looking for another goal. Captain Scarlett Camberos had the chance to do so after a PK was conceded to América due to a foul on Geyse inside the box.
“Scoring that goal meant to be close to lift the title, so I had to keep a cold mind,” said Camberos after the match.
It was the 80th and the hosts had one hand on the title. They couldn’t relax, though; they didn’t want to let it escape, as it had happened to them before.
Rayadas didn’t show up to this match, though. That made things easier for the Eagles. And at the end of the day, América got the title with three unanswered goals.
After the match, Goalkeeper Sandra Paños was chosen as the final’s goalkeeper, Irene Guerrero was the top goalscorer in the playoff after five goals, Geyse was chosen MVP, and Ángel Villacampa was chosen as the final’s coach.
However, many players were pivotal for América to win its third star. One of them was the 20-year-old Sofía Ramos. She has forged her career in the club and after Boston Legacy’s Nikki Hernández left, she had to fill that position, going from winger to left fullback and making the transition quite seamless.
Post match
Amid the celebrations, some players announced their futures and one of them was Paños. The former Barcelona goalkeeper announced she’s leaving the club.
“My time with América ends here. I’m very happy to finish it like this and I can say that now América has another fan,” said the goalkeeper after the match.
One day after the final, official numbers regarding television ratings for this final were known. The match was available to watch on Liga BBVA MX Femenil official channels on YouTube, Facebook, and TikTok but also on national television, on Televisa Univision. A total of 6.8 million tuned in to the match, plus the 632k that watched on YouTube and 54.9K that watched on Facebook, show that, once again, everybody watches women’s soccer.
Regarding Monterrey, they were a true contender this season and coach Amandine Miquel took them to this final in her first season at the helm. The results she got are worth praising after giving Rayadas its identity back; she showed that the roster they have is a competitive one.
General manager Eva Espejo spoke after the game, saying that they’re planning to add a few pieces to the roster, just like they did for this season, but basically, just work with what they have.
Teams in Liga MX Femenil will have two months to rest and be prepared for the next season, one that won’t have Mazatlán Femenil anymore, while Atlante will play its rookie season after buying Mazatlán’s spot in the league.
There won’t be too much rest for the champions, though, since they’re playing Gotham next Wednesday for Concacaf W.
