The Tijuana Xolos played their third game of the Liga MX 2024 Clausura against Chivas this Friday, January 26, at the Estadio Caliente in Tijuana.

The Aztec Canines were the home team in this game, but it did not seem that way at the Mictlan, with a large majority of the 31,033 spectators wearing Chivas jerseys.

Miguel Herrera did make some significant changes to his starting lineup, as he used a two-striker partnership featuring Raul Zuniga and Carlos Gonzalez. “Piojo” also sat out Fernando Madrigal and replaced him with Kevin Castaneda, but Madrigal did feature in the second half.

The two-striker formation did lead to more scoring opportunities for the Border City Dogs with a total of 11 shots (five on target). Club Tijuana was able to strike first in the match, as Carlos Gonzalez scored in the 19th minute via a shot inside of the box off an assist by Domingo Blanco. This was the first goal of the season for Xolos after nearly 200 minutes without scoring in the 2024 Clausura.

The clearest scoring opportunity after the goal in the first half came in the 41st minute when a shot by Carlos Gonzalez was stopped by Chivas’ goalkeeper Jose Rangel.

While Club Tijuana closed out the first half convincingly, Chivas began the second half with an onslaught of offense. Cade Cowell, Fernando Gonzalez, and Jose Castillo all came in for Chivas, and the game plan for Fernando Gago’s team was clearly a very aggressive one.

The plan worked out for the visitors, as Chivas scored in the 66th minute with an inside-of-the-box shot by Roberto Alvarado. Before the goal, Erick Gutierrez had a header that went wide, Cade Cowell had a shot way off target, and Antonio Rodriguez made some key saves for Xolos.

The match was highly entertaining with both teams having plenty of scoring opportunities in the second half. However, both teams finishing issues were put on display with several missed opportunities and some vital saves by Jose Rangel and Antonio Rodriguez.

The result was not the best for either team, as both Club Tijuana and Chivas de Guadalajara are yet to win in this Liga MX 2024 Clausura.

Club Tijuana #Xolos president Jorgealberto Hank postgame: “Today was a tough match. We played well the first half, but we struggled in the first 25 minutes of the second half. Chivas improved massively with their subs, but then it was even for both sides.”@EVT_News pic.twitter.com/vVSAEZzaSc

— Francisco Velasco (@FranciscoEfV) January 27, 2024

Club Tijuana president Jorgealberto Hank talked about this rough start to the season after the match against Chivas. “I think the team has been functioning in the first three games, but the results have not been good. I think we should have won the first game against America. That is what the stats said, but we ended up losing. Against Atlas, I believe the point was good because of what was seen on the pitch. But I believe we improved from what we had been playing on the road. Today was a tough match. We played well the first half, but we struggled in the first 25 minutes of the second half. Chivas improved massively with their subs, but then it was even for both sides; anybody could have won”.

The Xoloitzcuintles have improved from the initial match of the season, but a win is urgent at this point of the season. Club Tijuana will face Cruz Azul in Mexico City on January 30 and will play a consecutive away match against Pachuca on February 3 before coming back home to face Queretaro on February 9.

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.