Photo Credit: Itzel Segura / Prost Amerika
By: Jonny Rico
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It was not the finish that Tijuana Xolos fans were hoping for. But Sunday night’s 2-0 loss to Tigres UNAL (4-0 aggregate) concluded the Xoloitzcuintles’ participation in Liga MX. Xolos are left behind in the semifinal stage of the 2017 Clausura season and Tigres, the reigning Mexican league champions advance to its second consecutive league final now looking to win back-to-back titles.
It was never going to be easy for Tijuana to overcome the reigning champions and in the end there were just too many obstacles, the hill was too steep for Xolos to climb.
Club Tijuana needed a 2-0 win on Sunday to overturn a 2-0 loss during the first leg match of this semifinal series. But the key would be in not allowing Tigres to score a goal because then Xolos would be forced to score four. Tijuana had to play this match without four central defenders. Emanuel Aguilera, Yasser Corona, Michael Orozco and team captain Juan Carlos Valenzuela were all injured and unavailable. Colombian forward Aviles Hurtado, Liga MX MVP candidate, was also injured but played on Sunday anyways.
Xolos had to rely on two young rookie center-backs, Carlos Vargas and Hiram Muñoz. Both have been starters for several weeks now covering the absence of all the fallen defenders. Juan Carlos Nuñez, who has been part of the team since the second division days, was also needed to cover on the right side of the 4-man defensive line. While all of the above put in superb performances, the Tigres attack is just too strong to contain.
HISTORIC ACCOMPLISHMENT FOR XOLOS
Photo Credit: Itzel Segura / Prost Amerika
With a club as young as Tijuana Xolos (only 10 years old) a lot of big achievements get labeled as ‘historic’ because it is the first time in team history. But what these Xolos accomplished during the 2016-17 soccer year was truly remarkable and historic by Liga MX standard.
Liga MX is widely considered an even league where any team can beat any other team on any given day. This parity also produces inconsistency among the clubs. One week a team will put in a strong performance and the next they’ll get whooped by the opposition. One season a team will make a deep run in the playoffs and the next they won’t even qualify to the playoffs (Hello, 2016 Apertura finalist Club America).
This parity/inconsistency is what makes the Xolos accomplishment even more remarkable. Tijuana finished two consecutive seasons at the very top of the league table. The Xoloitzcuintles finished the 17-game regular season with 33 points in the 2016 Apertura and with 31 points in the 2017 Clausura. No other club has finished at the top of the standings two consecutive seasons since Liga MX went to short semester long tournaments in 1996.
HOW WILL THIS XOLOS TEAM BE REMEMBERED?
Photo Credit: Itzel Segura / Prost Amerika
Many Xolos fans will be feeling the frustrations of finishing at the top of the league table twice and not being able to advance in the playoffs to another final. And some/many will remember this Xolos squad for just that; not being able to bring regular season success into the playoff tournament.
But those with good memory will remember that prior to the start of the 2016 Apertura season, the main focus in Tijuana was to avoid the relegation drop. Xolos had suffered some real bad seasons and were now in danger of being dropped to second division. Manager Miguel Herrera needed to win as many points as possible to lead the team out of the relegation zone.
It that quest for points Xolos ended up at the top of the league table and a long way away from the bottom of the percentage table. They advanced to the playoffs as the number one seed. In the quarterfinals they faced their biggest rivals Club Leon. After losing the first leg match 3-0, Xolos were close to a magical comeback at home in the return leg taking a 3-0 lead before halftime. But the first leg damage was too big and Leon advanced to the semifinals.
Xolos followed that disappointment with another memorable run to the top of the standings in the Clausura season. Only this time the ended up facing the reigning champions Tigres, which could be the most powerful squad Liga MX has ever seen.
Those with good memory will also remember how Tijuana Xolos put up a pretty good fight against the powerful Tigres despite all of the injuries it was carrying.
UNCLEAR FUTURE
Photo Credit: Valeria Vital / Prost Amerika
The elimination to Tigres was most likely an end of an era for Tijuana Xolos. Nothing is confirmed but all rumors point to manager Miguel Herrera leaving to take over the vacancy at Club America next season. Rumors also point to Herrera taking with him star midfielder Guido Rodriguez. Xolos also seem to be losing star forward Aviles Hurtado. It all seemed like Hurtado would be joining Herrera and Rodriguez at Club America but CF Monterrey have stepped in with a lot of money in hand looking to lure Hurtado.
While all of the above seems like the likely movements, nothing has been officially confirmed by anyone. Now we all wait and see what will happen to this Xolos squad.
