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Monterrey and Cruz Azul go head-to-head at the Estadio BBVA in the first leg of the Mexican Liga MX playoff semi-finals on Wednesday. Martin Anselmi’s men head into the midweek clash on a run of three back-to-back away victories and will look to place one foot in the final.
A 2-1 first-leg victory was enough to send Monterrey through from the quarter-finals as they held on for a 1-1 draw with Tigres UANL on Sunday to secure a 3-2 aggregate victory.
With last weekend’s stalemate, Fernando Ortiz’s side have now failed to win their last three home matches, claiming two draws and losing once since April’s 3-1 victory over Inter Miami.
Next up for Monterrey is the challenge of an opposing side who have won their last two encounters, including a 2-1 victory when they met in Liga MX action on April 7.
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Cruz Azul turned in a resilient team display last time out as they fought back from behind to salvage a 2-2 second-leg draw with Pumas UNAM on home turf.
Having picked up a 2-0 victory in the reverse leg on May 10, Anselmi’s men progressed to the playoff semi-finals with a 4-2 aggregate victory over the Universitarios.
Cruz Azul head into Wednesday’s game unbeaten in their last eight matches across all competitions, claiming five wins and three draws since March’s 2-1 loss against Club Necaxa.
Monterrey vs Cruz Azul Head-To-Head
With 22 wins from the last 58 meetings between the sides, Cruz Azul boast a superior record in the history of this fixture. Monterrey have picked up 17 wins in that time, while the spoils have been shared on 19 occasions.
Monterrey Form Guide: D-W-L-W-L
Cruz Azul Form Guide: D-W-W-D-W
Monterrey vs Cruz Azul Team News
Monterrey
The home side will be without Sebastian Vegas and Erick Aguirre, who are currently recuperating from knee and thigh injuries respectively.
Injured: Sebastian Vegas, Erick Aguirre
Suspended: None
Cruz Azul
Carlos Alonso Vargas has been ruled out through a foot injury and will play no part in Wednesday’s game. Gabriel Fernández is also sidelined through a cruciate ligament injury.
Injured: Carlos Alonso Vargas, Gabriel Fernández
Suspended: None
Monterrey vs Cruz Azul Predicted XI
Monterrey Predicted XI (4-4-2): Esteban Andrada; John Medina, Victor Guzman, Hector Moreno, Gerardo Arteaga; Sergio Canales, Luis Romo, Jorge Rodriguez, Maximiliano Meza; Brandon Vazquez, German Berterame
Cruz Azul Predicted XI (4-1-4-1): Kevin Mier; Willer Ditta, Carlos Salcedo, Gonzalo Piovi, Rodrigo Huescas; Camilo Candido; Lorenzo Faravelli, Ignacio Rivero, Carlos Rodriguez, Rodolfo Rotondi; Uriel Antuna
Monterrey vs Cruz Azul Prediction
Looking at recent results between Monterrey and Cruz Azul, we anticipate an action-packed contest at the Estadio BBVA with plenty of goalmouth action.
We expect Monterrey to take the positives from Sunday’s draw against Tigres and claim a narrow victory in front of their home supporters.
Prediction: Monterrey 2-1 Cruz Azul
