Everything you need to know about the Liga MX Femenil final
Tigres faces Club América in the Liga MX Femenil final for Apertura 2022 after two nail-biting semifinals. We have previews, storylines, and TV info.
Photo credit: @AmericaFemenil
Club América will face Tigres in the Liga MX Femenil final in a repeat of the Apertura 2018 final. Will América claim their second title or will Tigres make history again by claiming their fifth?
¡¡OFICIAL!! América y Tigres se enfrentarán en la FINAL del A2022 de la Liga MX Femenil. El conjunto de Coapa eliminó a Chivas, mientras que las de San Nicolás de los Garza dejaron en el camino a Rayadas. La Quinta de Las Felinas o La Segunda de Las Águilas. pic.twitter.com/jWiWYsj1Rf
— Invictos (@InvictosSomos) November 8, 2022
To get to this point, Tigres and América had to stop their biggest rivals in the semifinals, and those games did not disappoint. The Clásico Regio and Nacional were everything and more of what is expected out of Clásicos.
Chivas almost completed a classic comeback
Hosts América made sure Chivas were never comfortable in the first leg. Any time Chivas looked as if they were making their way up the field there was always a yellow shirt there to stop them. The scoreline could have been worse, and Chivas was lucky to make it out down only 3-1.
De Scarlett para ALIGOL ⚽️⚽️#EstoEsAmérica 🦅 pic.twitter.com/9qsgEuV7Jm
— Club América Femenil (@AmericaFemenil) November 8, 2022
The second leg in Guadalajara did not look any different. Things went from bad to worse for Chivas when América scored not one but two goals to go up 5-1 on aggregate. It looked as if things were over, but that is when things heated up in Guadalajara.
The comeback started when Adriana Iturbide brought one back for the home side in the second half. Gabby Valenzuela scored in the 82nd minute, and three minutes later Licha Cervantes buried a penalty kick to come within one goal of drawing the game. In a matter of 45 minutes, the game went from 5-1 to 5-4 on aggregate. Unfortunately for the hosts, it was not meant to be as América scored an insurance goal in stoppage time to book their ticket to the final.
Rayadas were no match for Tigres
The Tigres and Monterrey matchup didn’t disappoint either, though it was more aggressive than the Clásico Nacional. Players went in for tackles left and right, but the referee refused to card anyone. It got so bad that Tigres player Uchenna Kanu was subbed off in the 30th minute due to multiple hits and was later diagnosed with a concussion.
Her absence did not make a big difference as Tigres were able to go up 2-0 before Stephany Mayor was shown a red card for a reckless tackle that kept her from playing the second leg. Rayadas were able to get a goal to make the score 2-1, and that’s how the game ended. All Tigres had to do was draw the second leg and they would be through to the finals.
Videos que significan TODO 💛 pic.twitter.com/KYPi7Vdum8
— Tigres Femenil 🐯 (@TigresFemenil) November 9, 2022
Tigres went into the BBVA Stadium with the same intensity as the first leg. Monterrey was able to get a goal back to tie the game on aggregate, but Mia Fishel of Tigres took the lead right back. Then in the second half, the visitors doubled their lead putting Monterrey down two goals on aggregate. A few minutes later they did get one back to be within one, but the Tigres defense was there to stop any hope of a comeback. On a rainy Monday night, Tigres was able to once again defeat their rivals for a spot in the finals.
An especially emotional final for Katty Martínez
The last time these two met in a final was during the Apertura 2018 championship where América defeated Tigres in a penalty showdown for their first-ever trophy. Four years later, Tigres has the opportunity for revenge while América can do what few have and defeat the mighty Amazonas. And while there are a lot of storylines, none tops that of Katty Martínez.
She spent her entire career with Tigres, helping them win four titles while being their leading goal scorer. Unfortunately, she suffered injuries and did not have a ton of action in her final season before leaving Tigres. Tigres, América, or Martínez herself have never come out with an explanation for why she left, just the typical farewell and welcome statements.
Falla tremenda de Katty Martínez. pic.twitter.com/lkFmQ6JfX1
— JUAN MANUEL CABADA (C❤A) (@JUANMACABADA) November 5, 2022
Martínez has struggled at América. She was part of the Mexican National Team roster that failed to qualify for the 2023 World Cup, and upon her return, she could not score to save her life. She was even left off the roster while two of her teammates, Renata Masciarelli and Janelly Farias, were disciplined after speaking out on her behalf. Martínez finally broke her scoring drought in the Clásico Capitalino where she scored four goals to help the team win 6-1. Though it took a while, it looks like Katty “Killer” Martínez is slowly making her way back.
Both América and Tigres must stay patient to win the final
América would like their Killer back, but it isn’t the end of the world if Martínez isn’t at her usual form. Kiana Palacios was finally given minutes this season and has proven she earned a starting role, while González and Scarlett Camberos have added more depth to the offense. The biggest issue América will have to fix is closing out games. If not for their stoppage-time goal, there’s no doubt they would’ve been scored on in the semis because their defense had a lot of difficulties containing Chivas as the clock wound down.
Tigres can capitalize on América’s defensive errors. That is actually how the Amazonas defeated the Águilas back in week five when Janelly Farias softly passed back an interceptable ball to González. Mia Fishel took advantage of the soft pass and went for the ball, and there was nothing Farias or González could do as Fishel scored the go-ahead goal.
América will want to capitalize on mistakes from goalkeeper Cecelia Santiago. This hasn’t been the best season for Santiago as she has been pretty shaky at times. But she was at the top of her game against Monterrey, and she even stopped a last-minute shot that might have sent Rayadas through. América will have to stretch the back line and bring out a shaky Santiago if they want to score against a tough Tigres side, while Tigres is going to have to be patient and let América make mistakes like they usually do.
👑𝗟𝗔 𝗚𝗥𝗔𝗡 𝗙𝗜𝗡𝗔𝗟 🏆@TigresFemenil se medirá a @AmericaFemenil en el último capítulo del Apertura 2022 de la Liga BBVA MX Femenil.
¿Quién levantará la Copa en esta ocasión? 🫣#VamosPorEllas👊🏼 pic.twitter.com/k4T47yYleq
— LigaBBVAFemenil (@LigaBBVAFemenil) November 8, 2022
The team that shows the most patience in the final two legs will end up lifting the trophy come Monday night. Will it be Tigres who will make history for a fifth time? Or will América bring home another title?
You can catch all the action on Friday, November 11th, at 9 pm ET on ViX+ and the Club América Femenil YouTube channel. The second leg will take place on Monday, November 14th, at 9 PM ET on ViX+ and the Tigres Femenil Facebook page.
