Atlas FC won their second Liga MX title in a row on Sunday, defeating Pachuca 3-2 over two legs. Atlas broke a 70-year championship drought in 2021 and has since followed up with another impressive trophy run.
The final against Pachuca was a tense, back-and-forth affair, with both home and away games featuring plenty of action and contentious referee decisions. Atlas proved their mettle on both legs, grinding out both results against a hungry Pachuca side!
A goal by Julio Furch that made a slight difference in the aggregate score of 3-2 over Pachuca, despite losing the second leg 2-1!
Story of the match
The game began with a ferocious reply from Pachuca, who, although losing the opening few minutes, found what they were missing with Romario Ibarra, in this case, a goal that would put them in the battle.
The Ecuadorian started the goal in the eighth minute, after a beautiful play down the left alley, passing between two opponents and before the exit of Camilo Vargas, he superbly defined at the far post.
Atlas, on the other hand, did not give up tonight at the Hidalgo Stadium and promptly began to respond, with Gustavo Cabral saving a ball on his goal line in the tenth minute to prevent the ‘Rojinegro’ goal.
In this case, Pachuca’s Erick Sánchez received contact inside the area and, after diving to the turf, Fernando Hernández, with the help of the VAR, determined that there was no penalty, but rather an offside, which caused the ‘Huracán’ fans to react negatively.
For the following few minutes, the 22 players on the field put in highs and lows of effort, but the energy was never lost on both fronts to win the title.
Atlas tied the game in the 45th minute, thanks to a penalty awarded for a handball in the box, which Julio Furch converted at the right post.
After much lost time in the first half, nine extra minutes were added, and it was in the 45+8 that Pachuca grabbed their second goal, thanks to Nico Ibaez, who headed the ball and put the ‘Tuzos’ ahead again, although the overall result remained 3-2 in favour of Atlas.
The second half of this second leg of the final between Pachuca and Atlas produced numerous scoring opportunities as well as cautions and red cards.
The ‘Tuzos’ pushed repeatedly and came near to beating Camilo Vargas’ goal again, but Atlas was intelligent and patient despite being a man down after Anbal Chalá’s red card in minute 82, which seemed to put them on the ropes.
Atlas’ effort, however, was outstanding, and after more than 90 minutes on the field, they won their second Liga Mx championship and third trophy in their existence.
