Although it ended up as an own goal on the Ref's official scorecard, the goal that made it 3-1 for Chivas against Pumas was a true work of art. The ball could have been pushed into the net by a rival, by a late arriving striker who glanced the ball in off his shoulder, or by the air, or maybe even by an unevenness in the field, but it would still be a drive worthy of mentioning.
There were 18 uninterrupted passes by El Rebaño Sagrado, but there were more things to highlight and let us tell you about them below.
The key player in this play was Alexis Vega, who, beyond taking 3 heel passes in a 10-meter space, managed to unsettle the Universitario defense.
How did our golden boy manage to do that? Here are the most outstanding features:
1. The combination between El 10 and Alvarado contributed to several things, take a look at the 5 players from Universidad that were tied up in that area when they began to connect. What was the purpose of pulling rivals into that area? To free up the opposite side, where Brizuela appeared with loose coverage, facing only one defender.
2. Then came the vital role of Sergio Flores and Fernando Beltrán, who complemented the great collective work previously carried out by Vega and Alvarado, 'Checo' spotted Nene looking for the space and passed one in and Beltran instead of interrupting the balls forward motion, feinted, forcing a defender to rush to press him. El Nene simply let the ball pass past his legs towards an on the run Zaldívar, who in turn pushed towards the Felinos weak side.
3. Brizuela used his great skills in a 1-on-1 and gained sufficient space to put in a chipped shot that was deflected by Gil Alcalá for goal that sealed the 3-1.
Finally, a special mention for the three most active participants in that play, because as we mentioned earlier, the play consisted of 18 passes and there were three Rebaño players who were the most influential in the creation of the play.
1. Alexis Vega with 4 passes plus the steal that initiates the play.
2. Roberto Alvarado intervened 4 times.
3. Fernando Beltran totaled 3 passes and the Screen to close the action.
