End of the undefeated streak

America's 11-match unbeaten streak came to an end yesterday as they collapsed against Toluca. The Diablos were a strong team who were not intimidated at the Azteca stadium. On the contrary, they were bold and took away more than three points, also bringing down America's overall ranking and leaving them at a disadvantage for the match against Cruz Azul.

Intelligent play by Toluca

Hernán Cristante's team was intelligent and, although it was difficult, they took advantage of the game's conditions, especially the 55 minutes they had with an extra man after Bruno Valdez was sent off. But even with eleven players, they did not back down.

What started as a favorable scenario for America turned into a match where they did not measure the intensity and became an adverse situation from which they could not recover.

Just as the match started, América took the lead. The Diablos had barely touched the grass when América launched a rapid counterattack.

Jérémy Ménez intercepted a clearance and sent a long ball to Ibarra, catching the Toluca defense off guard. What seemed like a set piece in América's favor turned into an action against them. Ibarra left the chasing players behind as he sprinted towards Alfredo Talavera and beat him with a low shot just one minute into the game.

But Toluca is not a team that gets intimidated or collapses. They have been fighting for the top positions in the table throughout the tournament. The team did not stress under Hernán Cristante's leadership; on the contrary, they knew how to make their way back into the game through good possession and combinations in the opponent's half.

Toluca found their rhythm in the match and gradually started to threaten Agustín Marchesín, especially through Luis Quiñones, who created constant danger during one-on-one situations with Edson Álvarez. Toluca regained possession after América's buildup, Barrientos passed the ball to Quiñones, who took a shot that Marchesín saved but spilled into the center of the box. Sambueza reacted quickly and scored the goal to equalize the match.

America became nervy as they struggled to get into the game. They were not seeing the ball and therefore were unable to play the match as they wanted. Marchesín made a mistake in a clearance and gifted the ball to Canelo, but the Argentine missed the opportunity to score the second goal for his team.

Toluca looked stronger, but America gradually regained control of the game, even though several of their players received yellow cards during their difficult moments. Bruno Valdez, in particular, was cautioned for touching the referee, and this unnecessary card had consequences. In the 34th minute, Valdez received a red card for a foul on Canelo when it seemed like he had already won the ball from the Toluca forward.

America needed to reorganize as Toluca smelled blood and felt the nerves in the yellow-clad team. In addition, Jérémy Ménez got injured and had to be substituted by Joe Corona. The best option for America was to go to halftime and regroup in all areas, but most importantly, to calm their nerves.

Hernán Cristante made a brave decision at the start of the second half. He knew it was the moment to not speculate and removed a defensive midfielder (Leonel López) to bring on another forward (Fernando Uribe).

Miguel Herrera wanted to keep his team balanced. Corona and Guido played in midfield, Edson moved to center-back, Renato to the right-back position, and Mateus played as a winger on that side. Oribe was left alone up front. The home team was going to have little space for attacking and would have to put in a lot of defensive effort to avoid losing the match and their undefeated record.

As expected, Toluca had more possession of the ball, while America remained organized from midfield to the back, waiting for the chance to make a patient and fortunate attack on Toluca's goal.

America had their chance in the 59th minute when Oribe outpositioned Osvaldo González. Oribe waited for Mateus's arrival and the Colombian took a right-footed shot, but it went straight into Alfredo Talavera's hands, preventing America from taking the lead in the match.

Although Toluca had not threatened much, Marchesín prevented the second goal for the Diablos when Canelo controlled a pass from Sambueza. The Argentine advanced and took a shot, but Agustín saved it with his foot.

The game became more intense, as America did not play poorly despite being a man down. They were less dangerous, but they controlled the game better. Oribe came close to scoring the second goal with a header that went wide.

The match got heated, both in the stands with a great atmosphere and on the field when Miguel Herrera and Hernán Cristante pushed each other on the sidelines. Referee Jorge Antonio Pérez promptly sent both coaches off.

Toluca lacked clarity and was unable to take advantage of the extra man or find spaces in America's defense, which held on for the draw. However, with ten minutes remaining, a set piece taken by Sambueza resulted in Osvaldo González scoring the winning goal for Toluca with his right foot in the goalmouth, ending America's unbeaten record.

But the damage was not only on the scoreboard, it also affected America's position in the table. They dropped from second to fourth place. Additionally, Bruno Valdez will not be able to play in the match against Cruz Azul, and Miguel Herrera will be absent from the bench. It remains to be seen how long Jérémy Ménez will be out due to injury. Toluca caused a lot of damage; America succumbed and lost more than three points.