Though Club América entered the 2013 Liga MX Apertura as the favorites to claim their second championship this season - with the club taking the Clausura title earlier in the year - Toluca seemed like a worthy opponent after controlling their quarterfinal series with Cruz Azul. Blitzing past Cruz by a 4-1 aggregate, Toluca was high with confidence but the road to a championship would certainly increase in difficulty with the tournament's No. 1 seed awaiting them. Despite playing the underdog role once again in the opening leg, Diablos Rojos earned another crucial victory as they further their quest to claim the trophy.
Thanks to goals from Isaac Brizuela and Edgar Benítez in a five-minute span, Toluca earned a crucial 2-1 victory over Club América at Estadio Nemesio Diez. Playing in front of over 20,000 passionate fans, Diablos Rojos never lost confidence after Luis Gabriel Rey put América up 1-0 with the opening goal in the 33rd minute. Adding a collective defensive effort to close out the first half and keep their opponents from recording additional tallies, Toluca remained in the match and evened it up with Brizuela's goal at the 50-minute mark. Five minutes later, Brizuela watched as Edgar Benítez threw Toluca into the lead with over 35 minutes left in the match.
A defensive struggle ensued from that point on and because of the second half surge of Toluca, Club América will now enter the second and final leg hoping to avoid elimination. Though talented players exist up and down the roster including Luis Gabriel Rey, Rubens Sambueza and keeper Moises Muñoz, América faces a tough task in overcoming a Toluca team riding a massive wave of emotion thanks to a tremendous postseason run. Though the deficit is only one, expect the defending Clausura champs to face a tough test when they retake the field at Estadio Azteca for the second leg of the Apertura semifinals.
Club América vs. Toluca: DATE, TIME & VIEWING INFO
DATE: Sunday, December 8
TIME: 6:00pm, ET
TV COVERAGE: Univision
LIVE STREAM: CLICK HERE
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