This Saturday, February 17, the Tijuana Xolos played their seventh game of the Liga MX 2024 Clausura season against Atletico San Luis at the Estadio Alfonso Lastras in San Luis Potosi, Mexico. Club Tijuana was winless in six consecutive games heading into the match, and a win was not expected to win in this match, considering the border city team’s massive struggles on the road.

However, the Border City Dogs came awfully close to obtaining the three points in a 3-3 draw filled with excitement. Club Tijuana opened the score in the 38th minute of the match when Lucas Rodriguez scored from a shot inside of the penalty box. The scoring play started when Carlos Gonzalez ran into San Luis’s goalkeeper with the ball and the sphere landed on Efrain Alvarez’s feet on the deflection, Alvarez then made a perfect pass into the penalty area to Lucas Rodriguez.

The lead did not last much, as Atletico San Luis scored in the 41st minute via an inside of the box shot by Leo Bonatini. The Brazilian striker was able to score off a cross by Juan Manuel Sanabria, but it did not take long for the Xoloitzcuintles to respond.

Efrain Alvarez scored in compensation time via a well-executed shot from close range off an assist by Lucas Rodriguez. Rodriguez took the ball on a counter attack from midfield and was able to find Alvarez inside of the penalty area. This was Alvarez’s second goal in two games for Club Tijuana, as he has been starting to perform and gain confidence in recent weeks.

The first half ended 2- 1 in Tijuana’s favor against all odds, but this lead did not last for the full 90 minutes. Atletico San Luis scored two unanswered goals to make it a 3-2 game by the 79th minute. The first goal came in the 73rd minute when Mateo Kilmowicz scored an impressive goal via a shot from outside of the penalty box. Javier Guemez also scored from outside of the box in the 79th minute, as the former Xolos’ player rocketed a shot after Nicolas Diaz cleared the ball from the area.

¡Gol de la Jauría! ¡Gol de Lucas Rodríguez! ⚽️

Asistencia de Efraín Álvarez ¡Vamoooos! 💪 pic.twitter.com/skKxm3lxIO

— Xolos 🐕 (@Xolos) February 17, 2024

When all hope seemed lost, Lucas “Titi” Rodriguez appeared once again with the unthinkable tying goal in the 88th minute. The goal came from a very well-constructed play by Club Tijuana, where a pair of headers found Carlos Gonzalez, who then passed the ball to Rodriguez. “Titi” fired a shot in between five San Luis defenders and somehow found the back of the net to tie the match.

The 3-3 score seemed like a lock, but in the dying seconds of the clash, Kevin Balanta committed a foul inside the penalty area, and the home team was penalized. Unai Bilbao stepped up to take the penalty, but flew the ball into another solar system as it went way beyond the net.

The missed penalty potentially gave manager Miguel Herrera some life, but Club Tijuana definitely showed life in this match. Before this game, the Aztec Canines had only scored four goals in six games, it was very uncharacteristic for this team to score three goals away from home, especially to come back how they did.

Despite all this, Miguel Herrera is still feeling the immense pressure with the bad results and controversies like getting into vocal arguments with fans. Club Tijuana is still winless after seven games played in this Liga MX 2024 Clausura, but is currently just four points out of a playoff spot at the time of writing.

The Border City Dogs will have another very difficult away bout in their next match against Toluca on February 25, before returning to the Estadio Caliente to face Monterrey on February 28.

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.