Enemy Scouting Report - Pachuca
(image via CF Pachuca)
Houston Dynamo left their Leagues Cup fate in the hands of Orlando and Santos Laguna to decide last weekend. While everyone started to sweat towards the end of the match, Orlando City pulled out the win over Santos with a 3-2 victory. Houston advanced to the Round of 32 as the runner up of the South 2 group to take on the number one seed from LigaMX in Pachuca.
Pachuca got a bye in the group stage and an automatic spot into the Round of 32 because were the team with the highest aggregate points accumulated across the 2022 Apertura and Clausura seasons. Now, Los Tuzos will play at Shell Energy Stadium against the Dynamo, in a match up that tends to see sparks fly. However, it has been more than 10 years since the teams have met each other.
Pachuca is currently not in the best form as they have started the 2023 Clausura with no wins in their first 3 matches, and no wins in their last 5 games played. Los Tuzos lost several of their players who helped the team make back-to-back finals in Liga MX. Luis Chavez is the most noticeable, after the Mexican international paid his own release clause in hopes to sign with a European team.
Even with their bad run of form, Pachuca is a very good team. They have a good number of talented players who can be decisive in the final third. One of those players is Erick Sanchez. Sanchez wears the number 10 on his back and is every bit of a magician in his playing style. He will be the team’s creative component to unlock Houston’s defense. The player that Erick will be targeting near the box will be Roberto de la Rosa, who was asked to step up after the departure of players like Romario Ibarra and Chicho Arango. The inexperienced Mexican striker is trying to find his feet as a pro. Lastly, a player who Pachuca will be putting a lot of faith in is recently arrived Uruguayan international David Terans. Terans comes from Athletico Paranaense in Brazil, where he had a good spell, scoring over 30 goals in 129 appearances. His best position is as a second striker or false 9.
Pachuca Season Record: 0W-1L-2D
Results in the last 30 days:
June 25 – Pachuca 1-2 Tigres UANL (Campeon de Campeones)
June 30 – Mazatlan 1-1 Pachuca
July 10 – Leon 4-0 Pachuca
July 16 – Pachuca 1-1 Pumas UNAM
July 23 – Pachuca 1-1 Real Oviedo (Friendly)
Past Match Staring XI (foxsports.com)
There will likely be some variation but look to see many of the players in the graphic starting.
2023 Active Roster
Goalkeepers: Carlos Agustin Moreno Luna, Jose Angel Eulogio Tellez, Carlos Eduardo Rodas Ozuna
Defenders: Sergio Damian Barreto, Byron David Castillo Segura, Jose Castillo Perez, Gustavo Daniel Cabral, Jorge Ernesto Berlanga Vasquez, Pedro Ivan Martinez Blanco, Rene Lopez Aburto, Ari Efrain Contreras Cruz
Midfielders: Javier Eduardo Lopez Ramirez, Paulino De La Fuente Gomez, Marino Hinestroza Angulo, Francisco Antonio Figueroa Diaz, Luis Gerardo Chavez Magallon, Jahazier Marchand Herrera, Jesus Daniel Hernandez Casiano, Pedro Pedraza Reyna, Bryan Alonso Gonzalez Olivan, Miguel David Terans Perez, Owen De Jesus Gonzalez Ojeda, Elias Enrique Montiel Avalos
Forwards: Lucas Gabriel Di Yorio, Roberto Carlos de la Rosa Gonzalez, Erick Daniel Sanchez Ocegueda, Illian Gerardo Hernandez Vargas, Alexei Dominguez Figueroa, Miguel Emilio Rodriguez Macias
Can the Dynamo triumph against the best team in Mexico in Pachuca?
