After a brilliant week for Chivas, with 3 back to back victories, it's time to take a closer look to the key points of El Rebaño's performance against Pumas. Ricardo Cadena's men were absolutely dominant throughout the 90 minutes of Clausura 2022 MatchDay 16's clash, which in fact lead them to the playoffs.
During most of the game, El Guadalajara had the ball in the opponent's half and accumulated 53% ball possession, which allowed it to establish the defensive block in the middle of the field and, whenever the ball was lost, the team was able to take it back quickly. The overall stats of the match showed that Chivas kicked 9 times, while Pumas kicked 13 times, however, the quality of the red and white team's shots was higher, as they accumulated 1.30 XG (expected goals), which surpassed the 0.57 registered by UNAM.
El Rebaño's superiority in numbers was enhanced by individual and collective aspects, line by line, which were fundamental in the development of the match.
1. The reliability of Miguel Jimenez. El 'Wacho' had a couple of interventions that helped the team maintain control of the game.
2. Another good news for El Chiverío is how the central defenders have complemented each other, as Hiram Mier has been able to support that line of 3, where Gilberto Orozco has taken on the role of leading the ball outings, driving the ball or looking for passes between lines, while 'Tiba' was very accurate in aerial play.
3. The wingers and their influence in the final third. Carlos Cisneros and Cristian Calderon provided width when Chivas attacked, by keeping close to the side line and sometimes compensating for the movements of the midfielders and attackers. For example, when Alexis Vega went to the left flank, 'Chicote' attacked on the inside and viceversa.
4. The natural flow of the 3 midfielders. Lalo' Torres played as an absolute center midfielder, as with the ball he had great criteria to distribute play and turned the red and white attacks into something meaningful. On the other hand, without the ball he was always well positioned and won 5 of his 6 defensive duels. It is worth to remark that the second goal came after he won a ball over the top. 'Nene' and 'Canelo' looked for each other throughout the match and managed to destabilize Pumas' midfield. Beltran was very accurate in accelerating the game and finding free teammates with his exquisite passes, while Angulo moved freely all over the field and was always a passing option for any teammate.
5. Chivas's attack was relentless against the Gold and Blue squad, largely due to Alexis Vega and Roberto Alvarado, who, not being area references, forced UNAM's center backs out of their zone. Vega came out on a night of total inspiration and with his particular dribbling caused havoc in the visitors defense, as evidenced by the first goal. Alvarado turned out to be a fundamental piece for Ricardo Cadena, as he allowed him to be placed in different zones, having minutes as a second striker and even as a right-sided midfielder.
The numbers that stand out the most:
Alexis Vega
- 89 minutes played
- 1 goal and 1 assist
- 5 dribbles completed in 8 attempts
- 2 key passes
- 3 fouls called
Roberto Alvarado
- 90 minutes played
- 1 goal and 1 assist
- 36 successful passes (85.7% efficiency)
- 2 key passes
- 2 successful long balls
Eduardo Torres
- 90 minutes played
- 47 successful passes (88.7% efficiency)
- 5 successful long balls
- 4 interceptions
- 3 successful tackles
- Was not dribbled in the game
