Guadalajara wants to show its best collective version in order to beat Rayados, who always represent a high degree of difficulty, which is why it will be of vital importance for the Rebaño's defenders to deliver another solid performance, as they have done during the first nine dates to consolidate themselves as one of the best defenses of the Apertura 2024.
One of the pillars of the red-and-white wall has been Gilberto Chiquete, who, thanks to his quality, presence and total commitment, has established himself as one of the leaders of the squad and his figure is more than valuable for Chivas.
Despite suffering an injury in Matchday 4 against Mazatlán, which kept him out for several weeks and caused him to miss the Leagues Cup, the left-sided center-back returned in great physical shape and it took him little time to regain his composure on the field. Chiquete has played 7 games so far in the Apertura 2024, all as a starter and with a total of 552 minutes.
The Canterano Rojiblanco will be vital for the Chiverío on Matchday 10, as facing such high-level rivals represents a great challenge in defensive duels. In addition, as he has done since his return to action, Chiquete will seek to be a permanent attacking threat, with his long runs and drives that always help to break the opponents' lines.
In fact, there is a very revealing statistic: against León on matchday 9, there was no player in the squad who made more runs into the final third of the opponent's half (11). He was also the third player with the most passes in that area, with 15 (only behind Roberto Alvarado and Fernando Beltrán). This tells us about his impact with the ball and how much he helps the Rebaño Sagrado to be a much deeper team, despite starting as a central defender.
To measure his impact on Chivas' defensive structure, here are Gilberto Chiquete's numbers after his return to action:
- 3 games played (3 as a starter)
- 237 minutes
- 9 duels won
- 11 possessions won
- 4 successful tackles
- 5 interceptions
- 123 successful passes
- 25 tackles in the final third
- 31 passes in the final third
- 1 chance created
- 1 completed dribble
