Interliga Games Excite Crowd
The eight-team Interliga soccer tournament might be new to the United States and it might be nothing more than a convoluted way of qualifying a couple of Mexican teams for South America’s prestigious Copa Libertadores, but then again, it just might catch on.
A sellout crowd of 27,000 packed the Home Depot Center on Sunday night to see Santos Laguna deservedly defeat Chivas of Guadalajara, 2-1, in the first game of a doubleheader.
They then stayed to watch Club America come from behind to beat Atlante, 3-2, in a vastly entertaining match.
The combined results mean -- if nothing else -- that Club America’s Dutch coach, Leo Beenhakker, has bragging rights for a while over Guadalajara’s Dutch coach, Hans Westerhof.
Earlier in the day, the 10-day tournament kicked off at Bragg Stadium in Stockton, where Atlas shut out the Tigres of UNL, 2-0, on goals by Jaime Duran and Manuel Perez, and Toluca blanked Morelia, 1-0, with Jose Manuel Abundis scoring the game-winner.
Guadalajara, which will field a spinoff team, Chivas USA, next year in Major League Soccer, took the lead in the game’s second minute when midfielder Omar Bravo beat Santos Laguna goalkeeper Cristian Lucchetti off a pass from forward Adolfo Bautista.
But the team from Torreon replied right away, with Mexico national team striker Jared Borgetti scoring the first of his two goals in the fourth minute.
Borgetti almost gave Santos Laguna the lead right before halftime, but his attempted shot from close range was alertly smothered by Guadalajara and Mexico national team goalkeeper Oswaldo Sanchez.
Borgetti would not be denied in the 55th minute, however, when overlapping defender Hector Lopez sent a well-flighted cross in from the right wing and the lanky Borgetti stooped to head the ball into the right corner of the net, fooling Sanchez, who had leaped in the opposite direction.
There were some anxious moments for Santos Laguna Coach Eduardo de la Torre when American referee Kevin Stott added three minutes of stoppage time and then seemed to allow even more, but Santos held on for the victory.
In the nightcap, Reinaldo Navia, recently acquired from Morelia, scored twice and substitute Ariel Gonzalez got the game-winner in the 82nd minute as Club America overcame a spirited Atlante team.
Atlante grabbed the lead in the 21st minute when Aaron Padilla steered the ball into an open net after Club America goalkeeper Adolfo Rios had come out to block Sebastian Gonzalez’s shot.
Beenhakker’s team tied it at the 38-minute mark when Navia side-footed the ball past Atlante goalkeeper Federico Vilar from about six yards after receiving a pass from the right flank by Jose Antonio Castro.
Navia scored again six minutes into the second half, but Sebastian Gonzalez tied it for Atlante in the 70th minute.
The tournament continues Tuesday night in San Jose.
