With a new and improved fresh start, Tigres de la UANL surely realizes that it has the right manager and squad to win some silverware
By: C.I. Sanchez
Although the Chinese calendar says 2011 is the year of the rabbit, in Mexico’s Primera Division it just might be the year of the Tigres.
The boys from Nuevo Leon are sitting well ahead Group 1, comfortably handling Monterrey and Guadalajara. Unquestionably, the Tigres will get a leading position for the knockout phase and could very well win the Clausura 2011 championship assuming it keeps playing some beautiful football.
Perhaps this brilliant Clausura 2011 could very well be the start of a strong resurgence for a team that has not won a league trophy since the 1980s. Brazilian manager Ricardo Ferretti has a squad in place that is strong, unified, and consistent.
Tigres started the season with a draw and ended with a 4-game winning streak. In between that madness, there were 2 loses. What an incredible 35 points!
Much credit should be given to Danilinho, Hector Mancilla, and Lucas Lobos, all of whom bailed the team out during decisive matches and nail-biting times: Lobos and Daniliniho’s goals in the second half to gain a point against Queretaro, Mancilla’s 90’+ winner against America, Mancilla’s brace against Pachuca, Lobos’ early goal in the victory at Morelia, and the list goes on.
Yet, credit also needs to be given to some pretty impressive defensive displays. That match against Atlante was remarkable in that it held the opposition to 3 shots with 1 on goal. It also held goal hungry Monterrey to a lowly 1 shot on goal. Against Atlas, goalkeeper Cirilo Saucedo must have been truly bored; he did not have to deal with any shots on goal. Then again, he comfortably handled Morelia’s 8 shots and saved 2 on goal attempts.
The team has apparently erased its memory of the Apertura 2010—and for good reason.
Looking back on 2010, without the splendid Danilinho and Mancilla, there was not much of a scoring threat. Tigres only managed 24 goals all season, 5 of which were taken from a lowly Estudiantes Tecos.
Defensively, things were not as sharp. The team allowed 16 goals—not necessarily terrible but compared to this season’s 9 goals allowed, it was faulty! Needless to say, it was an underwhelming performance that ended with a mere 24 points.
How things have changed for the team that has bounced back from defeat to winning ways!
The home loss to Toluca in January was a minor blip. The bitter away loss to UNAM just might be the needed catalyst to motivate the team for a tough fight in the knockout phase.
Fans in Nuevo Leon will surely be hoping it is the year of the tiger, not the puma!
Although the Chinese calendar says 2011 is the year of the rabbit, in Mexico’s Primera Division it just might be the year of the Tigres.
The boys from Nuevo Leon are sitting well ahead Group 1, comfortably handling Monterrey and Guadalajara. Unquestionably, the Tigres will get a leading position for the knockout phase and could very well win the Clausura 2011 championship assuming it keeps playing some beautiful football.
Perhaps this brilliant Clausura 2011 could very well be the start of a strong resurgence for a team that has not won a league trophy since the 1980s. Brazilian manager Ricardo Ferretti has a squad in place that is strong, unified, and consistent.
Tigres started the season with a draw and ended with a 4-game winning streak. In between that madness, there were 2 loses. What an incredible 35 points!
Much credit should be given to Danilinho, Hector Mancilla, and Lucas Lobos, all of whom bailed the team out during decisive matches and nail-biting times: Lobos and Daniliniho’s goals in the second half to gain a point against Queretaro, Mancilla’s 90’+ winner against America, Mancilla’s brace against Pachuca, Lobos’ early goal in the victory at Morelia, and the list goes on.
Yet, credit also needs to be given to some pretty impressive defensive displays. That match against Atlante was remarkable in that it held the opposition to 3 shots with 1 on goal. It also held goal hungry Monterrey to a lowly 1 shot on goal. Against Atlas, goalkeeper Cirilo Saucedo must have been truly bored; he did not have to deal with any shots on goal. Then again, he comfortably handled Morelia’s 8 shots and saved 2 on goal attempts.
The team has apparently erased its memory of the Apertura 2010—and for good reason.
Looking back on 2010, without the splendid Danilinho and Mancilla, there was not much of a scoring threat. Tigres only managed 24 goals all season, 5 of which were taken from a lowly Estudiantes Tecos.
Defensively, things were not as sharp. The team allowed 16 goals—not necessarily terrible but compared to this season’s 9 goals allowed, it was faulty! Needless to say, it was an underwhelming performance that ended with a mere 24 points.
How things have changed for the team that has bounced back from defeat to winning ways!
The home loss to Toluca in January was a minor blip. The bitter away loss to UNAM just might be the needed catalyst to motivate the team for a tough fight in the knockout phase.
Fans in Nuevo Leon will surely be hoping it is the year of the tiger, not the puma!
