Club América recorded their first win of the season after they defeated Necaxa at home. While their first victory should be a cause for celebration the environment around the club is bittersweet as many changes are around the corner for the tricampeon.
The day started off with warm sensations for América as two important players returned from injury: Erick ‘Chiquito’ Sanchez and Henry Martin. ‘Chiquito’ had missed the first few games of the season while Martin had been fighting muscle injuries for the majority
of 2025.
Necaxa attempted to get going early as Franco Rossano had a chance in the eighth minute as he took a shot at goal but he was unable to find the back of the net. A few minutes later Kevin Gutierrez committed a foul outside his goalkeeper’s area and received the first yellow card of the night after a reckless foul. Brian Rodriguez stepped up to take the free kick and his shot hit the crossbar for their first warning of the game. A few minutes later the visitors had another opportunity this time with Tomas Badaloni who took his own shot from distance but he was unable to get his shot on target. Necaxa had been playing well at the moment and it seemed as though they were going to make it a hard game for the Aguilas but their momentum did not last long. It only took 36 minutes for the home side to open the score thanks to Rodriguez. The Uruguayan made his way up the field and he took a shot from distance that found the back of the net. The player took the shot from distance because no one in a red jersey tried to stop him. No one stepped up to take the ball from him even though he made his way to the box. A lapse in judgement from the visitors was all the Aguilas needed to get the game going.
Necaxa attempted to make their way back into the game after a small lapse but then things got worse after their backline committed another error. Rodriguez made his way up the left side of the field attempting to find an angle to shoot the ball. He was unable to take a shot at goal as red jerseys surrounded him so he passed the ball towards the top of the box where Victor Davila was unmarked. The Chilean took a brief moment to adjust himself and then sent the ball into the back of the net past Unsain’s outstretched arms to double the lead. Once again Necaxa left a player unmarked and they paid for it. Another mistake, another goal.
Things then went from bad to worse for the visitors as Gutierrez committed another reckless foul. The referee did not hesitate to hand him a yellow and since that was his second, he saw red and was sent off the field. The visitors were going to have only 10 men on the field for the next 45 minutes.
In the second half Necaxa were lucky that América was unable to take advantage of being up another player. Their forwards were unable to get the ball into the back of the net even though they had multiple chances to do so. They were in dire need of a true striker and they got just that in the 58th minute when Henry Martin made his return to the pitch. Not even two minutes later and the striker had a dangerous chance at goal when he attempted a bicycle kick but the ball hit the post. Martin was only a few inches away from having the perfect return after a long absence. While the home side had more chances at goal the same could not be said for the visitors as Necaxa tried to stay afloat being a player down. Not even their substitutions were able to make a difference and they were lucky not to go down more goals with the disadvantage they had for the second half.
While América was happy to take all three points, a lot of serious moments have overtaken this win. Rumors had started swirling about multiple departures as the front office looks to turn the ship around while they still can. Ralph Orquin, Raul Zuñiga, Rodrigo Aguirre, Alvaro Fidalgo and Allan Saint-Maximin have all been rumored to leave. All the signs point to Orquin leaving in the summer and all the info available about this can be read here. While Zuñiga’s name is in the departures column, he was available for the game and even provoked a red card. Aguirre and Fidalgo were not available for the game which was a big sign for their eventual departure. Aguirre did not have a big impact on the team as many expected him to have but he will still be missed. Meanwhile Fidalgo’s departure will be the hardest not only on the team but for fans as well. The Spaniard has spent five years in Mexico and easily became a legend helping América dominate for two years. Many believed that he would eventually accept a call to the Mexican National Team but that does not seem likely as he, reportedly, will make his way back to Spain. Fidalgo had stated on multiple occasions that he felt Spanish and wanted to represent Spain so it was surprising when reports surfaced that he would play for Mexico. Now, it doesn’t seem like it will happen. The Aguilas will deeply miss the Spaniard and it will be hard to find a replacement.
Another big hit happened when América announced that the Frenchman Saint-Maximin had decided to leave Mexico. Just a few days prior the player himself had opened up to the public and spoke about racist incidents that he and his kids had experienced. While the reason hasn’t been officially announced, it seems as though the Frenchman and his family decided to leave Mexico due to racist incidents. It is very unfortunate that a player has to leave because of racism but this is nothing new as Liga MX have dealt with racist incidents in the past. Hopefully things will get better because no one should have to deal with situations like this, especially kids. América has had a rough week but last night’s win will hopefully be the start of another historic run for the club.
