This Wednesday, May 1, Club Tijuana officially announced that Miguel “Piojo” Herrera was no longer going to be the head coach for the border city team.

Herrera enjoyed success at his first stint with the Aztec Canines, obtaining back-to-back first-place finishes, but had a disastrous second-stint with the Xoloitzcuintles, not even making the playoffs.

“Piojo” joined the Border City Dogs seven games into the 2023 Clausura season and was only able to achieve two wins in 11 games in charge. Club Tijuana finished in 15th place in that 2023 Clausura campaign, and much more was expected in the 2023 Apertura, but not much changed with a 13th place finish in Herrera’s first full season in his second stint with the club.

This past 2024 Clausura was Herrera’s worst season at Club Tijuana and one of the worst campaigns he has ever endured in his managerial career. The Xoloitzcuintles finished in 16th place with 14 points and did not get their first win of the season until 15 games into the campaign.

The Aztec Canines also only had one home win in the entire season, coming against Puebla, who were by far the worst team in this 2024 Clausura. Club Tijuana ended up having to pay a fee upwards of $5 million after this season for finishing dead last on the relegation table.

Herrera said constantly that he would not resign until he was asked to leave by Club Tijuana president Jorgealberto Hank, but “Piojo” revealed the details of his departure in an interview with Fox Deportes. “I sat down with Jorge (Jorgealberto Hank) to plan what was next and he had some doubts. We talked, and I told him that if he had doubts, it was best to go our separate ways before he or I made a mistake”.

By the end of the 2024 Clausura season, “Piojo” even said he was “embarrassed” to talk to the press with Tijuana’s terrible results. Tijuana fans were also clearly frustrated by the end of the season, some even directly having verbal arguments with Miguel Herrera on several occasions. Liga MX does not typically run on long-term projects, and it was odd that “Piojo” managed to stay with Club Tijuana for so long.

Herrera was not the only problem at Xolos with a plethora of issues plaguing the border city team, but him staying with the Aztec Canines was certainly bad for everyone involved at this point. It is difficult to pinpoint what comes next for Miguel Herrera in his managerial career, there have been whispers of the Mexican manager joining San Diego FC, but there is nothing concrete yet.

Francisco Velasco

Francisco, 26, Chula Vista/Tijuana. I have been a Padres fan all my life, did most of the series previews and recaps in the Padres’ 2016 season for EVT. Now I focus more on the local soccer scene. Tijuana Xolos, San Diego Loyal, San Diego Wave.