GUADALAJARA, Mexico – Tigres UANL qualified for the Liga MX semifinals on Saturday evening, with Jose Torres and Herculez Gomez both involved in the Monterrey team’s 1-1 tie against Pachuca at home in the Estadio Universitario.
Torres featured on the left-hand side of a three-man grouping in central midfield and was his usual tidy self in possession over the 90 minutes. The Texan came close on a couple occasions, sending a free kick just over the bar on the hour mark, then hitting the crossbar in the 70th minute after turning onto his right foot inside the area and curling a shot towards goal.
Gomez started on the bench and came on in the 59th minute on the right wing. The 32-year-old held up play well and was shrewd in possession – with the score 1-1 and Tigres set to qualify – as Pachuca searched for the winning goal.
The teams finished 2-2 on aggregate over the two legs, with Tigres advancing due to their higher finish in the regular-season table.
Tigres will play one of Atlas, Monterrey, Toluca or Chiapas in the semis, although they can’t meet Club América, who also qualified on Saturday after beating Pumas 1-0, with Bernabe Magaña on the bench for the defeated team.
In the Under-20 playoff tournament, seven Americans again featured for Club Tijuana, as they drew 1-1 against Atlas in Guadalajara to secure a 3-1 aggregate score and advance to the semis.
Stevie Rodriguez netted Tijuana’s only goal, from the penalty spot, while Alejandro Guido, Paul Arriola, Raul Rodriguez, John Requejo Jr., Fernando Arce Jr. and Amando Moreno also featured.
