On Saturday, the Rays celebrated a solid 3-1 victory over the Warriors in their opening game of the season at Estadio Corona. Necaxa started off aggressively, scoring their first goal just 3 minutes into the match through Agustin Oliveros. Tomás Badaloni followed up with a second goal for Necaxa in the 13th minute, putting them in a commanding position early on. Santos Laguna managed to pull one back with Lucas Di Yorio finding the net in the 29th minute, yet their efforts fell short as they conceded another goal to a penalty taken by Julián Carranza in the 43rd minute of the second half.
Cristian Calderón stood out as the man of the match. The Necaxa defender was pivotal, clearing two dangerous balls from the area. Additionally, Agustin Oliveros made his mark on the game as a critical defender who also scored a goal.
Santos Laguna’s coach, Francisco Rodríguez, set up his starting XI in a 4-5-1 formation, with Carlos Acevedo in goal; José Abella, Haret Ortega, Kevin Balanta, and Bruno Amione in defense; Aldo López, Cristian Dájome, Fran Villalba, Kevin Palacios, and Carlos Gruezo in midfield; and Lucas Di Yorio leading the attack.
In contrast, Necaxa’s coach, Martín Varini, opted for a 5-3-2 formation with Ezequiel Unsain guarding the net; Kevin Ante, Emilio Lara, Agustin Oliveros, Cristian Calderón, and Alexis Peña in defense; and Raúl Sánchez, Danny Leyva, Rogelio Cortéz in midfield; with Ricardo Monreal and Tomás Badaloni up front.
The referee for this encounter was Luis García Rodríguez.
Looking ahead to the next match, the Warriors will be visiting Toluca FC, while the Rays will host CF Monterrey.
With this result, the home team finds itself point-less, sitting in 17th place, while the visitors enjoy a strong start with 3 points at the top of the table.
substitutions for Santos Laguna
67’ 2H – Aldo López was replaced by Efrain Orona
68’ 2H – Kevin Balanta was substituted for Ezequiel Bullaude
booked for Santos Laguna:
20’ 1H – Bruno Amione (Unsportsmanlike conduct)
sent off for Santos Laguna:
6’ 2H – José Abella (Straight red card)
substitutions for Necaxa
59’ 2H – Rogelio Cortéz was replaced by Lorenzo Faravelli
74’ 2H – Raúl Sánchez was substituted for Kevin Gutiérrez
82’ 2H – Tomás Badaloni was replaced by Julián Carranza
83’ 2H – Ricardo Monreal was substituted for Franco Rossano and Kevin Palacios was replaced by Jesús Ocejo
booked for Necaxa:
44’ 1H – Danny Leyva (Time-wasting)