Photo Credit: Club America
By Jonny Rico
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The 2016 Apertura season will kickoff for Club America on Saturday when it hosts Chiapas FC at Estadio Azteca. This is the crucial season all of its fans have been waiting for as the club will celebrate 100 years of assistance midway through the regular season.
Demand and expectations are always high for Club America but in this Centenial tournament the pressure is on even more. Manager Ignacio Ambriz and club President Ricardo Pelaez will be expected to turn in positive results in the form of silverware and possible Copa Libertadores qualification.
Both Pelaez and Ambriz did not help their own cause and only added pressure to themselves in the off-season. Due to the special occasion that the 2016 Apertura will bring fans were hoping to see a big name international signing like the club has done several times before. The last two big name signing were former La Liga and Serie A players Ivan Zamorano and Claudio Lopez. Both the Chilean and Argentine went on to win league title with America in 2002 and 2005 respectively. Before the transfer season America had been linked with Zlatan Ibrahimovich, Antonio Valencia, Fernando Torres and more. But the club decided on three low key players instead.
The lack of a Centennial commemorative jersey or a friendly match to celebrate the special day have also put the demanding Club America fans on edge and will now more than ever expect positive end of season results to make up for voids of a big name player, jersey and friendly match.
Ambriz will have a very similar squad in to the one he has worked with and reached two consecutive league semifinals in his two seasons in charge. The team did add depth in various parts of the field. Central defenders Pablo Cesar Aguilar and Paolo Golts were offered contract extensions and Chilean international Bruno Valdez has joined following his conquest of Copa America. Ecuadorian international Renato Ibarra was signed from Dutch side Vitesse to add more options to the attacking midfield area. Ambriz will now have plenty of where to choose from with captain Rubens Sambueza, Osvaldo Martinez, Michael Arroyo as well as Ibarra. And finally America also added a striker. Argentine striker Silvio Romero was signed from Chiapas FC where he scored 36 goals in his three semester-long seasons.
Club America is the most successful club in Liga MX history with a total of 12 league titles and fans will demand the 13th at the end of the 2016 Apertura. A record setting sixth Copa MX title could also help smooth over the lack of Centennial celebrations as well as a Copa Libertadores qualification (obtained by finishing the regular season in first or second place).
LIKELY CLUB AMERICA STARTING LINEUP:
*Mexican international striker Oribe Peralta was left out of the likely starting lineup because he will be on international duties with the Mexican National Team at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio for a majority of the first half of the season. Peralta will be available for the first two matches and then leaves with the National Team, he could miss up to Week 8 of the Apertura regular season.
MLS
