After a scoreless second leg, Club América advanced to the next round of the Concacaf Champions Cup over Olimpia. While the Aguilas dominated the game in terms of numbers, they were unable to capitalize
on any of their chances and they were lucky their opponent did not make them pay for their misses. Now América will focus on this weekend as they will face their arch rivals Chivas in the Clasico Nacional.
To start the game André Jardine made no changes in his lineup from the first leg meanwhile Eduardo Espinel made just one change. Olimpia was the team that had their backs against the wall as they needed a win if they wanted to move onto the next round.
Before the 10 minute mark it looked like the Aguilas doubled their lead thanks to Brian ‘ Rayito’ Rodriguez but the goal was called back to offside. The Uruguayan pounced on a counter-attack as the visitors were caught too far up as they intended to send their players high in order to score early and it backfired but they were saved by a flag. While the early pressure was good, it seemed to slip as the game went on as the visitors found themselves with less and less chances as the first half progressed. Meanwhile the Aguilas had multiple chances to open the score. Erick ‘Chiquito’ Sanchez had a shot from distance that barely missed the net as no white jerseys went up to try to stop the player. ‘Rayito’ tried on his own to make a dangerous play as he made his way into the box but he was unable to find an angle to shoot. He sent the ball to Alexis Gutierrez but the ball was intercepted stopping any chance of a shot. It wasn’t until the 40th minute that Olimpia had their second chance at goal as they made their way into the box but the shot towards goal was punched out by Luis Angel Malagon who did not hesitate to protect his goal. The half ended without a goal and both sides were going to need to make changes if they wanted goals in the second half.
Olimpia started the second half without a change to their lineup meanwhile Jardine subbed out Jonathan dos Santos for Brazilian Raphael Veiga. América started the second half just like the first as they kept their foot on the pedal. ‘Raito’ Rodriguez was close to scoring in the first minute and a few minutes later he created a dangerous chance in the box. The Uruguayan was unable to find an angle to shoot the ball so he sent it to Israel Reyes who attempted a bicycle kick but he didn’t put a lot of strength on it and Rodrigo Dourado went for the rebound but the ball went just wide of the net. It wasn’t until the 56th minute that Olimpia found their first opportunity in the second half when Edwin Rodriguez took a shot from distance but the ball went above the crossbar. A few minutes later the Aguilas made their second substitution as Henry Martin came on for Alexis Gutierrez. A minute later, Martin had a chance at goal as ‘Chiquito’ sent a ball to the center of the box where Martin kicked the ball towards goal but the goalkeeper was able to easily collect the ball. This move had been done countless times in the past by Martin where he always finished the play with a goal but today he did not kick the ball with force and that’s why he missed. The player was able to return from injury but it was obvious he has yet to find his rhythm. 10 minutes later América had a big chance in front of goal when Kevin Alvarez received a ball inside the box but he was not able to control the ball and it got away from him and the goalkeeper was able to collect it. Up to this point the second half was all the Aguilas as Olimpia was unable to find a goal. The goal did not come as they did not have the ball and when they did they were unable to break down the Aguilas backline. They needed at least a goal but they played as if they had no urgency. This was how the rest of the half went. América had possession of the ball but were unable to do anything with it meanwhile Olimpia found themselves chasing the ball. No goals came in the last minutes of the game and it was evident that the home crowd was unhappy with their teams’ performance.
Club América was able to advance onto the next round in the Concacaf Champions Cup but their performance left a lot to be desired. Over both legs they maintained possession and had many chances in front of goal but they were not effective with the ball. They were missing a playmaker and that was evident. In past seasons the team had playmakers and had clear ideas of what to do with the ball but now, now they are unsure. With the talent they have on their roster they should be able to make it far in the competition but without a true game plan they will fall short of the trophy once again.
