In a closely contested match at Estadio Olímpico Universitario, neither Pumas UNAM nor Necaxa managed to take full control, resulting in a 1-1 draw during the fourth round of Liga MX.
Necaxa fell behind early in the second half when Rubén Duarte scored in the 58th minute. He connected with a corner delivered from the left by Adalberto Carrasquilla, outmaneuvering the defense to head the ball into the bottom right corner of the net.
However, Necaxa equalized just ten minutes later with a striking goal from Diego De Buen in the 68th minute. He proved to be a key player in the match, firing three shots on target and securing the equalizer.
Even though Pumas UNAM had a higher number of shots on goal, recording eleven shots with eight missing the target, they couldn’t secure a victory.
Both Duarte and De Buen stood out as the match’s crucial players, with Duarte solidifying his defensive role while contributing with a goal for Pumas.
Pumas coach Efraín Juárez opted for a 4-5-1 formation featuring Keylor Navas in goal; a defense line consisting of Pablo Bennevendo, Nathan Silva, Ángel Azuaje, and the goalscorer Rubén Duarte; with José Luis Caicedo, Santiago Trigos, Pedro Vite, Jorge Ruvalcaba, and Adalberto Carrasquilla commanding the midfield; and Guillermo Martínez leading the attack.
Necaxa, led by manager Fernando Gago, set up in a 4-4-2 formation with Ezequiel Unsain guarding the net; Tomás Jacob, Alexis Peña, Jesús Alcántar, and Cristian Calderón making the backline; while Kevin Ante, José Rodríguez, Diego De Buen, and Rogelio Cortéz occupied the midfield; and Ricardo Monreal combined with Tomás Badaloni in the forward positions.
The match was officiated by referee Guillermo Pacheco Larios.
Looking ahead, Pumas UNAM will visit Toluca FC next, while Necaxa will host León. Currently, Pumas sits in the tenth position with 4 points, while Necaxa follows closely with 5 points in seventh place.
Substitutions for Pumas UNAM
72’ 2T – Santiago Trigos out for Piero Quispe
80’ 2T – Guillermo Martínez out for Rodrigo López
Yellow Cards for Pumas UNAM:
43’ 1T Jorge Ruvalcaba (Unsporting behavior), 73’ 2T Adalberto Carrasquilla (Unsporting behavior), and 81’ 2T Piero Quispe (Unsporting behavior)
Substitutions for Necaxa
45’ 2T – Rogelio Cortéz out for Diber Cambindo
61’ 2T – Tomás Badaloni out for Pavel Pérez and Ricardo Monreal out for Raúl Sánchez
87’ 2T – Diego De Buen out for Diego Gómez
Yellow Cards for Necaxa:
76’ 2T Cristian Calderón (Unsporting behavior) and 84’ 2T Raúl Sánchez (Unsporting behavior)