After winning their respective groups with unbeaten records, Sporting KC and Cruz Azul will collide in the quarterfinals of the 2013-14 CONCACAF Champions League in March. Ahead of the home-and-away match-up, SportingKC.com will be providing regular updates on La Máquina as part of the site's CCL Crash Course series. Want to know more about the tournament? Check out our 2013-14 CCL Guide.
Cruz Azul moved into second place in the Liga MX standings with a 2-1 victory over Santos Laguna on Saturday in Week 2 of the 2014 Clausura. After opening the season with a scoreless draw at Monterrey one week earlier, Cruz Azul made no changes to their starting lineup and collected their first win of the campaign thanks to Mariano Pavone's game-winning goal in the 89th minute.
Inside an empty Estadio Azul -- a sanction sparked by fans invading the field following the 2013 finale -- Cruz Azul's home opener provided little to cheer for through the opening 30 minutes. Cruz Azul goalkeeper José de Jesús Corona did well to deny a first time strike from Javier Orozco, but was beaten by Orozco on the ensuing corner kick. Oribe Peralta (CONCACAF's 2013 Player of the Year) won the initial header and Orozco pounced with a sliding finish at the near post to open the scoring in the 25th minute against his former team. Orozco played eight years for Cruz Azul until joining Santos last year and is the all-time leading scorer in CONCACAF Champions League competition with 24 goals.
Three minutes later, Cruz Azul captain Gerardo Torrado was cautioned for a reckless tackle on Orozco in midfield; collecting his second yellow card in as many games and the first of 10 shown by referee Miguel Ángel Chacón Viveros on Saturday. La Máquina's midfield took a second hit in short succession with the exit of Christian Giménez (13 goals, eight assists in 2013) due to injury.
The tide would turn however in the 39th minute as Santos were reduced to 10 men when defender José Abella collided mid-air with Torrado. In many ways an innocuous duel (compared to the considerably more aggregious challenge made by teammate Carlos Darwin Quintero minutes later on Marco Fabian), both players had arms raised and eyes on the ball but the three-time World Cup veteran Torrado bore the brunt of a 15-yard run up from Abella, who made his Liga MX debut against Cruz Azul in July after playing in the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup.
Cruz Azul made the most of their man advantage, controlling the second half and pulling level in the 78th minute through a tidy piece of one touch, combination play between Jerónimo Amione and Fabian. Running onto a pass from Amione and inches from the endline, Fabian cut the ball back with a clipped cross toward Amione. The 5'9" forward rose high to direct his header past former Mexico National Team netminder Oswaldo Sánchez.
Amione and Sánchez were the central figures in igniting a mass confrontation at the 85-minute mark which culminated with five cautions shown. None proved more significant than the yellow card received by Fabian, who made contact with two referees and yanked on the hair of an opponent during the scuffle. Within moments of play resuming, the mercurial star earned a second booking for a late tackle on César Ibáñez to leave both teams level with 10 players for the dramatic finale.
Rising between two defenders at the top of the six-yard box, Pavone powered a header inside the far post off a pinpoint service from Sergio Nápoles on the left flank. The Argentine led Cruz Azul with 18 goals in 2013 and opened his 2014 scoring account with his latest goal since May, when he scored eight minutes into stoppage time that lasted over 20 minutes due to a power outage at Estadio Azul.
Cruz Azul will next travel south to face Chiapas at 9 p.m. CT on Saturday at Estadio Victor Manuel Reyna. La Máquina -- who won the Copa MX Clausura 2013 -- will not participate in the Copa MX Clausura 2014 that starts Tuesday due to their participation in the 2013-14 CONCACAF Champions League.
