The Liga MX Apertura comes to a close as Club America and CF Monterrey face off with the game on the line. While they may not have been at the top of the table before the playoffs began, these are two of the most experienced teams at navigating the playoffs, with a combined 20 Liga MX titles.
Club America has a record of 15, but in recent years Monterrey has grown into a strong force. Now they have a home and away game to see who will win this current version and there will be American participation. Alex Zendejas scored for America in the last game, while Brandon Vazquez came on to do the same for Monterrey.
Here are our storylines, how to watch the game and more:
How to watch and ratings
- Date: Thursday, December 12th | Time: 9 p.m. ET
- Location: Estadio Cuauhtemoc – Puebla, Mexico
- TV: TUDN | Live stream: Fubo TV (try for free)
- Opportunities: Club America +105; Draw +220; Monterrey +280
How they got here
Monterrey: Rayados secured a seeding in the playoffs with fifth place and have been scoring high in their games so far, conceding six goals against the Pumas and six more against San Luis en route to the final. Defense may be a problem allowing six goals but this is one of the most dangerous attacks in Liga MX led by German Berterame but there are contributions from across the squad.
Club America: They have played more games than Monterrey and have only conceded three goals in the playoffs so far, but all of those goals came against league leaders Cruz Azul in a wild 4-3 win that saw two players sent off with red cards in injury time after Rodrigo Aguirre's penalty in the 94th minute broke the deadlock in the game.
Storylines
Monterrey: Going up against America's strong defense will be a chance to see how good Monterrey's attack is. Even if it's no coincidence that a team reaches the final, the odds are different when you play against the most successful team in Mexico. Not being able to keep a clean sheet will make things more difficult for Monterrey, but it also makes for a final well worth watching.
Monterrey predicted XI: Luis Cardenas, Stefan Medina, Hector Moreno, Gerardo Arteaga, Sergio Canales, Oliver Torres, Jorge Rodriguez, Iker Jareth Fimbres Ochoa, Lucas Ocampos, Roberto de la Rosa, German Berterame
Club America: Aguirre may have scored the winner against Cruz Azul, but after the red card, Andre Jardine will have to figure out what to do without any of his strikers available. This will put more pressure on Henry Martin and Zendejas, but if this game could be close, depth off the bench will be key.
Club America predicted XI: Luis Malagon, Cristian Borja, Sebastian Caceres, Ramon Juarez Del Castillo, Israel Reyes, Alvaro Fidalgo, Jonathan dos Santos, Richard Sanchez, Henry Martin, Alex Zendejas
forecast
It will be a first leg that will leave you wanting more, which is good as these teams will face each other again on Sunday to decide the final. Choose: Club America 2, Monterrey 2
