Sky Blue rebirth; advances to the semifinals against America

▲ Ignacio Rivero celebrates La Máquina's first goal against the Esmeraldas. Photo by Cristina Rodríguez

Alberto Aceves

La Jornada Newspaper, Monday, May 12, 2025, p. 9

Cruz Azul coined a concept that for years defined defeats that began as victories. That stigma of being left on the sidelines when playing finals, matches against bitter rivals, or two-legged series has been replaced by a winning culture that today guarantees privileged places. Just as it did in the CONCACAF Cup to reach the finals, La Máquina showed that in the League it can also accomplish tasks it couldn't before. It advanced to the semifinal against América by defeating León (2-1, 5-3 on aggregate) at the Estadio Olímpico at Ciudad Universitaria.

The sky-blue victory reached its peak, causing hundreds of fans to appear in the distance through the window of the transport that took them singing through the streets. Because here they are/ those who sing with passion/ those who put their heart into it/ they will never abandon you , they exclaimed over glass that seemed to collapse. That atmosphere had its chaos and its beauty, also its rebellion. Captain Ignacio Rivero's goal corrected what had been done wrong for more than 30 minutes against León, a rival who was growing, impetuous, who dominated the first half until the Uruguayan's shot on goal (33).

Rivero only had to tap in the ball, which Ángel Sepúlveda headed down. The manual on how to stay calm in the midst of a storm gave La Fiera the opportunity to close the gap, all thanks to Andrés Montaño's early injury, which left La Máquina with a difficult-to-fill void in midfield. Venezuelan Jhonder Cádiz's equalizer, set up on a counterattack by a clearance from more than 50 meters by goalkeeper Alfonso Blanco (minute 39), ended the promise of an early finish.

Like every tie, the home team and favorite experienced moments of anguish. Goalkeeper Kevin Mier appeared when needed, or when their defenders made mistakes, and young Amaury Morales ran so fast that, in a break down the right flank, he sent a low cross into the six-yard box and led to Rodrigo Echeverría's own goal (66th minute), enough to seal their place in the semifinals against América.

In 15 months, La Máquina and the current three-time champion have faced each other nine times, six of them in the knockout stages. The Celestes won two, lost three, and drew four, a true classic of memorable episodes. Although they eliminated the Águilas from the CONCACAF title match, the unfinished business for this squad, now coached by Vicente Sánchez, remains the league.

León, meanwhile, was left out of everything it imagined. It took an anti-establishment stance a few days ago, clashing with the Mexican Football Federation, La Liga, and FIFA itself. In the legal dispute surrounding the Club World Cup, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruling—for violating rules regarding multi-ownership of teams—shattered the foundations of its project.

The Esmeralda board paid nearly $10 million to sign James Rodríguez, Colombia's captain for the 2024 Copa América, with the promise of attending the tournament in the United States. Five other foreign players have joined as reinforcements since last year: Stiven Mendoza, Emiliano Rigoni, Rodrigo Echeverría, Nicolás Fonseca, and Jhonder Cádiz, the latter three for a similar amount to what the former Real Madrid striker received.

Convinced by president Jesús Martínez Murguía, the experienced Andrés Guardado, who had announced his retirement in November, also returned to end his career at the Mundialito. It was all over in a matter of days. In addition to the CAS verdict issued against him on Tuesday, the Panzas Verdes yesterday added a second blow to their investment of more than $20 million, bidding farewell to the only competition in which they could achieve any sporting success.

Monterrey dismisses Demichelis

Martín Demichelis's tenure as Monterrey's manager has come to an end. The Argentine coach was dismissed yesterday from Rayados, one of the most expensive teams in Mexican soccer, after being eliminated in the quarterfinals by Toluca and failing to bring a title to the Monterrey team's trophy cabinet.

The club has decided to terminate Martín Demichelis's tenure as head coach of the first team. We appreciate the professionalism and commitment of him and his coaching staff during this time and wish him success in his future endeavors , the club announced.

The Argentine coach, with a past on the River Plate bench, has failed to win a trophy since joining the club in August 2024 and was eliminated a few weeks ago in the round of 16 of the CONCACAF Champions Cup against the Vancouver Whitecaps.

Rayados have a squad valued at 73.20 million euros, according to the specialized website Transfermarkt, and is the third most valuable squad in the league after América and Cruz Azul.

▲ Barcelona forward Ferrán Torres celebrates his teammate Raphinha's goal against Real Madrid yesterday in Barcelona. Photo: AFP

Ap

La Jornada Newspaper, Monday, May 12, 2025, p. a10

Madrid. Barcelona took a big step toward the Spanish league title with a 4-3 victory over Real Madrid, despite Kylian Mbappé's hat trick, in a fascinating derby yesterday.

With this result, the Blaugrana team opened a seven-point lead over their rival, who is second, with three matches remaining.

Raphinha scored twice, and Lamine Yamal and Eric Garcia added a goal each for Barça, who are two points away from their 28th league title.

The Catalan club trailed 2-0 after Mbappé scored in the fifth and 14th minutes at the Montjuïc Olympic Stadium. The hosts leveled the match shortly after the half-hour mark and led 4-2 at halftime in a sensational comeback.

The French striker completed his hat trick in the 70th minute, but Madrid were unable to recover in a fatal blow to their hopes of successfully defending their league title.

Mbappé became the top scorer in the Spanish league with 27 goals, two more than Barcelona's Robert Lewandowski, who did not start yesterday.

He also became the Madrid player with the most goals in his debut season, with 39, surpassing the 37 scored by Iván Zamorano in the 1992-93 campaign. Mbappé had already surpassed Cristiano Ronaldo and Ruud van Nistelrooy (both with 33 goals) and Brazilian Ronaldo (30).

It was another thrilling match for Barcelona, ​​after being eliminated in the Champions League semifinals by Inter Milan in extra time on Tuesday. The Blaugrana lost 7-6 on aggregate to the Italian side.

We have to celebrate the victory. I'm very happy for the entire club and the fans. The atmosphere is incredible, and I really appreciate it , said Barça manager Hansi Flick.

The work isn't done. We need to be more consistent defensively, but with games every three days, it's very difficult to train , he added.

Barcelona's first chance to win the title will be against Espanyol on Thursday. They will then host Villarreal and visit Athletic Bilbao on the final matchday.

The result all but ended Madrid's hopes of finishing the season with a title, and for now they will have to focus on the Club World Cup in June.

It's the last Clásico of the season, we have to finish well and try to win all three matches , said Carlo Ancelotti, who played 350 matches for Madrid, when answering the press if it would be his last derby, as there is speculation that he will leave the club to manage the Brazilian national team, and that his place will be taken by former Real Madrid player Xabi Alonso, who recently announced that he will leave Bayer Leverkusen.

We defended poorly, period. We gave away some things and they punished us , he added.

In the fight against relegation, Leganés (18th) beat Español (14th) 3-2 to move within a point of Alavés, the first team outside the relegation zone, who lost 1-0 to Athletic Club, who are in fourth place. Real Betis drew 1-1 with Osasuna.

Erendira Palma Hernández

La Jornada Newspaper, Monday, May 12, 2025, p. a10

In a league where European, American, African, and South American players are increasingly participating, Pachuca's Charlyn Corral stands out as a two-time scoring champion and is the leader of a Pachuca team seeking its first title in the women's tournament when it faces América. Today's final also marks a milestone in media growth for the tournament, following a 13 percent increase in stadium attendance.

"It's the only title missing from our trophy cabinet. We've invested heavily in the entire women's division, from the first team to the youth teams. Now the players, and especially Corral, deserve this championship ," said Armando Martínez, president of the Hidalgo club.

Corral has been a revolutionary in Mexican women's soccer, both for her impeccable technique—which led her to win a Pichichi award as the top scorer in the Spanish League—and for her outspoken approach to decisions regarding the development of the sport in Mexico.

Exiled from the Mexican national team since expressing her dissatisfaction with former coach Leonardo Cuéllar's performance, the striker has focused on confirming her potential through individual achievements or at club level. She did so with Atlético de Madrid, winning a Spanish Super Cup, and in Mexico, winning the 2024 National Sports Award.

At 1.52 meters tall and 33 years old, Corral confirmed her elite athletic ability by scoring 39 goals in a single season—18 in the previous tournament and 21 this season. Her statistics seem to defy stereotypes, especially in a tournament where more than 60 foreign players with more impressive athletic characteristics have been registered, most of them from the United States, such as American player Sarah Luebbert, or world champions with Spain Jennifer Hermoso and Irene Guerrero.

Given their character and footballing potential, it was logical that the ideal club to play in Mexico after a stint in Spain was Pachuca, the first team to show seriousness and invest without hesitation in the Liga MX Femenil since its creation in 2017. Las Tuzas were pioneers in creating a clubhouse, special fields, and providing decent working conditions for players when other teams were just considering the tournament's potential reach. Eight years later, the Liga MX Femenil has captivated new audiences, after some matches were broadcast on social media. A tournament report in April stated that the regular season saw stadium attendance of 319,441 fans, surpassing the 266,000 fans of the previous tournament.

The Estadio Olímpico Universitario had its largest attendance ever for a women's match, with more than 18,000 fans for the Pumas- Chivas quarterfinal match. The Ciudad de los Deportes stadium will also host a Liga MX Femenil final for the first time, in a match where Pachuca is seeking the coveted title after losing three finals. With Correa as their star and a 3-0 lead from the first leg, the Tuzas are confident of overcoming América, a team that, despite having suffered injuries, has already won the championship twice.

From the Editorial Staff

La Jornada Newspaper, Monday, May 12, 2025, p. a11

Thanks to a goal from Mexican defender Johan Vásquez, Genoa rescued a 2-2 draw against leaders Napoli yesterday in Matchday 36 of Italy's Serie A, a result that allows Inter Milan to move to within one point of the top spot after beating Torino 2-0.

Inter's victory, which played earlier, put pressure on Napoli, who took the lead twice, but were held back each time by a Genoa side that is no longer in contention this season.

Belgian Romelu Lukaku (15th minute) and Giacomo Raspadori (64th) put Antonio Conte's team ahead, but an own goal from home goalkeeper Alex Meret (32nd minute) and another goal from Vásquez, who headed in a cross six minutes from time (84th), gave the visitors a draw that could cost Napoli the Scudetto . Despite this result, the Neapolitan team still depends on itself, and next weekend they will have their first chance to win the fourth title in their history (after those of 1987 and 1990 with Maradona, and that of 2023, with Mexican Hirving Chucky Lozano).

Before then, neither fatigue from playing extra time against Barcelona in the Champions League on Tuesday nor the downpour that fell yesterday in Turin could stop Inter Milan.

▲ Johan Vásquez scored for Genoa in the 84th minute yesterday at the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium. Photo: AFP

Under the storm, which forced the match to be stopped a few minutes before halftime, which also lasted half an hour, the Nerazzurri took the three points with goals from Nicola Zalewski (minute 14) and a penalty from Kristjan Asllani (49).

Napoli has 78 points, one more than Inter with just two matches remaining. Udinese also lost 2-1 to Monza, and Hellas Verona drew 1-1 with Lecce.

In England's Premier League, Mexican Edson Álvarez returned to the pitch after four matches and participated in his team, West Ham,'s 2-0 victory over Manchester United.

The tricolor, who had not played due to a technical decision and physical discomfort, was a substitute and came on as a substitute in the 64th minute, when the score was already 2-0 in favor of his team.

Meanwhile, Arsenal, trailing 2-0, managed to secure a point by salvaging a 2-2 draw at the already champions of the English league, Liverpool; however, it was not enough to secure second place with two matches remaining. This fourth draw in six matches weakens the second place they have held since the end of 2024.

From the Editorial Staff

La Jornada Newspaper, Monday, May 12, 2025, p. a11

Mexico City's Benito Juárez International Airport (AICM) will invest 8.5 billion pesos to improve its functionality and fulfill a contract signed by the federal government with the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) as part of the requirements for the 2026 World Cup.

The Navy's commitment is to have these three airports ready so that delegations and teams can trust the availability of a safe, functional, and pleasant airport , Juan Manuel Muñoz, corporate director of Airside Construction and Auxiliary Buildings at AICM, told ESPN. In January of this year, the Mexican government signed a contract with FIFA in which it committed to making improvements to the airports in Mexico City, Toluca, and Cuernavaca to accommodate the national teams that will compete in the World Cup.

The contract is due to be fulfilled by early 2026.

FIFA is requesting specific issues, such as aspects to guarantee security, suitable access, adequate filters, landings under certain protocols, and, in general, to cover the logistical needs of airport users , said Héctor Fabián Cortés Álvarez, Deputy Director of Operations at Benito Juárez International Airport.