Santos Laguna falls 3-0 to Tigres in Houston friendly
Santos Laguna fell 3-0 to Tigres last night in Houston, Texas, in a friendly match that both teams took advantage of to stay active during the FIFA break.
The Comarca team started the match with Agustín Marchesín in goal and Javier Abella, Carlos Izquierdoz, Kristian Álvarez, and Gerardo Arteaga in defense. In midfield, Emiliano Armenteros and Ulises Rivas played in the recovery, with Freddy Hinestroza and Ulises Dávila on the wings. Up front, Djaniny Tavares and Martín Bravo.
The stadium looked like the home of the felines, as they had great support from their fans in the stands, but that did not intimidate the Comarca team.
After 15 minutes, the feline team took the lead with a goal from Damián Álvarez, who created space on the left side before shooting across the goal and hitting the post to make it 1-0.
The albiverde insistence did not bear fruit, the match ended with Tigres' three-goal advantage, which was a fair winner in the contest.
At minute 33, Tigres increased their lead after a cross from 'Gringo' Torres to the far post, where Ismael Sosa appeared to send a cross for Lucas Zelayarán to score with his head, making it 2-0 for the felines. This partial score unquestionably reflected what happened on the field, as Ricardo Ferretti's team dominated.
The laguneros only sporadically threatened Tigres' goal. Emiliano Armenteros tried to surprise with a long-range shot, but the ball went over the goal defended by Palos.
In the second half, 'Tuca' made changes, bringing on three homegrown players and taking off experienced elements such as Zelayarán, Sosa, and Juninho.
Santos showed eagerness to do something and balance the situation a bit, and started to create opportunities against Palos, who made an important save at 62'. The albiverdes were throwing everything at the attack.
But then, the albiverde momentum was stifled with a corner kick by Espericueta. The ball reached the far post, where Luis Quiñones closed in to make it 3-0 at minute 67.
Tigres continued to make changes, with more homegrown players coming on to be observed by their coach, while 'Chepo' de la Torre tried to keep calm and get his team to react.
At minute 82, Espericueta took a free kick, and the ball passed very close to the left post. Tigres was looking for the fourth goal.
At the end, Gael Sandoval came close to scoring for Santos Laguna, as he sent the ball directly to the upper corner, but Palos was attentive and deflected it for a corner kick.
The albiverde insistence did not bear fruit, and the match ended with Tigres' three-goal advantage, making them a fair winner in the contest.
JFR