With the Clausura beginning Friday, Goal provides one thing to watch for each day of the brief offseason since America lifted the Apertura trophy
Manuel Velasquez1Will regular season champ win the league?
Not since the 2014 Apertura, when America topped the table and went on to beat Tigres in the final, has the team that finished the regular season first lifted the trophy at the end of the playoffs.
Of course, no No. 6 team ever has won the crown. Here's to a weird season of Liga MX – one that gives us plenty to talk about and maybe even breaks some trends.
AdvertisementHector Vivas2Is Furch ready to repeat the feat?
Last tournament, Santos Laguna shipped out its top scorer and soon found it needed no replacement. Djaniny went to Saudi Arabia, but Santos scored in every regular season match. Much of that was thanks to Julio Furch, who found the back of the net a dozen times.
This offseason, Santos once again has sold a forward, with Jonathan Rodriguez heading to Cruz Azul. Rodriguez didn't have as many goals as Furch but often played a part in the build-up as Furch's running mate. It'll be a big task for Furch to still find the same number of goals.
ROCIO VAZQUEZ/AFP/Getty Images3What exactly is Queretaro doing?
Fresh off an eyebrow-raising campaign with a new coach and several young players, Querataro has decided…to blow it all up?
The Gallos Blancos seemed positioned for another run to the Liguilla but have loaned out goalkeeper Tiago Volpi, sold center back Hiram Mier to Chivas and moved around several youth players. Marcel Ruiz is still with the club at time of writing, as is midifelder Javier Guemez, but the directors haven't done coach Rafa Puente Jr. any favors in the market.
Getty4What’s Alvarez’s role with America?
Edson Alvarez played mostly as a center back with Club America during the Apertura – though there were stretches during the season during which he didn't play at all.
However, his performance in the playoffs in the midfield, specifically the two goals he scored in the second leg of the final to give America the title, seem to be evidence that he could make more of an impact in the midfield. Miguel Herrera has tried to put Mateus Uribe in a more advanced role before to mixed results, and you wouldn't expect a player of Guido Rodriguez's caliber to be benched after having one of the best individual campaigns of 2018. Yet, getting the talented young El Tri player into the starting XI should benefit both him and the club.