Cruz Azul and Toluca will both be looking for their first Liga MX victory when they meet at the Estadio Azteca on Saturday.
The Diablos Rojos will be aiming for revenge after failing to win any of the past three encounters between the clubs since a 4-1 victory in February 2022.
Cruz Azul has struggled for success in the Mexican Liga MX since winning the Apertura title four years ago, ending a 23-year trophy drought.
In order to replicate their 2018-19 success, Los Celestes have gone through four head coaches since August of that year, with current manager Ricardo Ferretti coming over in February.
However, they finished seventh and eighth in the standings before finishing the season with a sad last-16 exit from the Clausura playoff in May.
Cruz Azul were denied a fantastic start to the 2023-24 season when they were defeated 2-0 by 10-man Atlas in the league opener on Sunday.
Eduardo Aguirre and Aldo Rocha scored in each half to give Benjamin Mora’s side a comfortable victory at the Jalisco Stadium.
Toluca, like this weekend’s hosts, were denied a first-day triumph when they were kept to a goalless draw by a tenacious Necaxa team at the Estadio Nemesio Diez.
Despite a relatively poor start to the new season, Ignacio Ambriz’s side will be looking to rebound as they attempt to take up where they left off in last season’s Clausura.
Toluca finished fourth in the Clausura standings and qualified for the playoffs after scoring 32 points in 17 matches in the second half of the season.
However, the Diablos Rojos were eliminated from the playoffs in the quarter-finals by Tigres UANL in a 5-4 aggregate defeat in May.
Team Updates
Cruz Azul is still missing Uriel Antuna and Carlos Rodriguez, who are now on international duty with Mexico’s national team at the Gold Cup.
Ferretti will be missing 24-year-old left-back Carlos Vargas, who has been out with an ACL injury since February.
Carlos Salcedo, a newly acquired defender, began Monday’s opening against Atlas and will likely form the center-back partnership with 22-year-old Alan Zubiri again.
Toluca, on the other hand, enter the weekend with a clean bill of health and no suspension problems, allowing Ambriz to field a full-strength side.
Toluca, on the other hand, enter the weekend with a clean bill of health and no suspension problems, allowing Ambriz to field a full-strength side.
Last season, Leonardo Fernandez was a notable player for the Diablos Rojos, and the 24-year-old midfielder, who racked up 16 goals and assists, will be one to watch.
Cruz Azul’s potential starting lineup:
Jurado, Salcedo, Zubiri, Escobar, and Vargas; Huescas, Tabo, Rotondi, and Moises; Lotti
Toluca’s potential starting lineup:
Meneses, Navarro, Baeza, Fernandez; Morales, Lopez; Volpi; Orrantia, Mosquera, Huerta, Isais;
Cruz Azul 2-1 Toluca, in our opinion.
After failing to win their first two games of the season, Cruz Azul and Toluca will enter the weekend looking for a morale boost, which should make for an entertaining encounter to watch. Los Celestes have the benefit of playing at home, thus we expect them to take all three points, although by a single goal.
Please click here for data analysis of the most likely outcomes, scorelines, and more for this match.
Best advice
Sporita.com, one of our expert tipster partners, predicts a home win in this match. Click here to see what else they forecast for this game and for more of their tried-and-true football predictions.
Email previews are available.
Get Sports Mole’s daily newsletter with previews and predictions for every important game by clicking here!
