FC Juarez Ties Puebla 1-1, Clinches Number 2 Seed in Copa MX
Bravos de FC Juarez tied against Puebla last night by the score of 1-1 in Copa MX play. The result gave the Bravos a record of 3 wins and 1 tie in the group stage of the midweek competition for a total of 10 points. This was good enough for Bravos to win the group.
This result also gave the Bravos the number 2 seed in the knockout stage of the contest. This means that the Bravos will also have home field advantage for the remainder of the competition up until the point that they would meet the number one seed in the final (should that happen).
It was announced this morning that the round of 16 match will take place next Wednesday, February 27 at Benito Juarez Olympic Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 8:15pm MST. They will face the first division club Leon.
As for the match that took place yesterday, the Bravos looked volumes better than this past weekend. This starting 11 came out with a spark that lead to offensive creativity and the production of thorough scoring opportunities for 90 minutes of play.
After the match, head coach Gabriel Caballero commented, "I was happy with the way the team played tonight, a lot of chances to score were created, something we have been missing as of late. Aside from tie, getting the victory tonight, which I feel we deserved, I'm happy with the team's performance in this group stage of the competition."
As for the dismal performance the team from the Borderland has had in Ascenso MX play up until this point in the season, Caballero said, "We are behind in the amount of points with thought we would have up until this point in the season. The match versus Venados (a loss at home) destabilized us a bit, but I think this is gonna be a very tight competition as represented in the general standings table, with the playoffs not being determined until the end. We are a team that is on the upswing and will close out the season the best way possible and be there in the end."
FC Juarez will have a chance to initiate that upswing on Sunday afternoon as they will host Club Celaya. The game will kickoff at 5pm MST.