Indonesia
Nigeria
South Africa

Pueblavs.Club Leon

sportsmole.co.uk, 14 July 2024, 15:52
Seeking their first victory in Liga MX since April, Club Leon travel to Estadio Cuauthemoc for a date with Puebla on matchday three of the Apertura campaign.

Over the weekend, La Franja suffered a 4-1 defeat to Necaxa, while La Fiera could only manage a 0-0 draw against Pachuca.

Match preview

From the early going on Saturday, Jose Manuel de la Torre's men were on the back foot chasing the game against Necaxa, down by two goals after a quarter of an hour and suffering their first defeat of the Apertura this year.

It was the first time since matchday 15 of the previous Clausura season that they had conceded the opening goal, and Los Camoteros did not earn a single point when allowing the first goal in the previous Apertura and Clausura campaigns.

Meanwhile, their result on Saturday was their worst defeat since a 4-0 loss to Atletico San Luis on matchday 10 of the previous Clausura campaign and the first time they had allowed that many goals in a Liga MX affair since that aforementioned encounter.

Their only victory in the previous Clausura season came at home versus Mazatlan (3-2), and they can equal their longest winning run at Estadio Cuauthemoc from the previous Apertura with a win on Tuesday (two).

La Camoteros are undefeated in their last three home contests against Club Leon across all competitions, winning this exact fixture last year 5-4.

It has been another poor start to a Liga MX season for Leon, who have just a single point after two matchdays, one more than they had following their opening two encounters in the 2024 Clausura.

Jorge Bava's men have scored a goal or fewer in three consecutive Liga MX affairs, while this club have not gone winless in their opening three Apertura contests since 2018.

Since the previous Clausura season, this team have gone winless in three consecutive away matches, with those two defeats coming against Pumas.

Arguably the strongest attribute of this club last season was their defensive structure, but after two matchdays they have conceded the joint-second-most goals in the Apertura (four).

They have points in three of their previous four meetings with Puebla, though they have not beaten them away from home since the 2021 Apertura (1-0).

Pachuca Liga MX form:

Club Leon Liga MX form:

Team News

We saw the same starting 11 for Puebla on matchday two as matchday one, with Cristian Mares and Rafael Duran being the only newcomers to come off the substitutes bench.

Duran had the only goal in their defeat to Necaxa, as he and Canadian Lucas Cavallini are the only ones to find the back of the net for them in this Apertura campaign.

On Saturday, Leon were without Andres Guardado because of a hamstring injury, and Victor Barajas will be suspended for this encounter following his straight red card against Pachuca.

Alfonso Blanco stopped the three Pachuca efforts that he faced over the weekend for his first clean sheet in this phase of the competition.

Puebla possible starting lineup:

Rodriguez; Ferrerais, Gularte, Orona, Angulo; De Buen; Velasco, Gonzalez, Waller, Duran; Cavallini

Club Leon possible starting lineup:

Blanco; Barreiro, Frias, Bellon, Reyes; Ambriz, Medina; Guerra, Alvarado, Cabral; Ayon

We say: Puebla 1-1 Club Leon

Leon have been notoriously slow starters domestically, and we expect to see a stalemate between two sides that may be a little timid going forward, given how poor they have each looked defensively in transition.

Previews by email

Top News

26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Aiming to arrest their underwhelming Primeira Liga results before Christmas, Estoril Praia and Moreirense clash at Estadio Antonio Coimbra da Mota on Saturday, keen to notch important victories in the gameweek 16 encounter. 26 December 2024 talksport.com Birmingham's Boxing Day clash with Burton had to be temporarily suspended due to a medical emergency at St Andrew's. 26 December 2024 talksport.com Kevin De Bruyne certainly wasn't in the festive spirit after walking down the tunnel immediately after Manchester City were held to a 1-1 draw against Everton. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Jose Mourinho reportedly wants Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford at Fenerbahce, while Paris Saint-Germain will not sign the 27-year-old. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Erling Haaland missed a second-half penalty as Manchester City's Premier League plight continued with a 1-1 draw at home to a dogged Everton unit at the Etihad Stadium. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Primeira Liga title contenders Porto could climb to first place on Saturday when they host relegation-threatened Boavista at Estadio do Dragao in gameweek 16. 26 December 2024 talksport.com Goalkeepers tend to be a little crazy and Jordan Pickford is no different. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Chelsea and Fulham have announced their teams for the West London derby at Stamford Bridge on Boxing Day. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United are paying increased attention to Atalanta BC midfielder Ederson ahead of a potential summer move to Old Trafford. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Arsenal pair Gabriel Jesus and David Raya could both write new chapters of Gunners history when Mikel Arteta's men host Ipswich Town in Friday's Premier League encounter. 26 December 2024 talksport.com Christmas may have come and gone, but Man City' boss Pep Guardiola - and his players - are hoping for presents in the form of new signings. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Aiming to finish a successful year with a streak of five straight Serie A wins, Inter Milan will visit Cagliari on Saturday, as both sides play their final fixture of 2024. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea are supposedly all prepared to go head-to-head for the services of Club Brugge defender Maxim De Cuyper in the January window. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk says that he loves the club but that the future is uncertain ahead of his side's clash against Leicester City at Anfield on Boxing Day in the Premier League. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United could supposedly repeat their Chido Obi Martin trick by prising another young talent away from Arsenal in 2025. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United and Real Madrid have seemingly been handed a significant boost in their hopes of landing AC Milan left-back Theo Hernandez, who is experiencing 'high tension' with head coach Paulo Fonseca. 26 December 2024 talksport.com Man City will attempt to arrest their calamitous slump in form when they face Everton on Boxing Day. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Finishing off their 2024 schedule with a battle at the bottom, Serie A survival rivals Parma and Monza will meet at Stadio Tardini on Saturday. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta will not be 'waving the white flag' in the Premier League title race, but the Spaniard and his squad will look at the top-flight table with "a fair bit of regret". 26 December 2024 talksport.com Man City's under pressure stars slept at the club's training ground on Christmas Day as they look to turn around their worrying form. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Chelsea have reportedly laid out their plan over how to approach for the upcoming January transfer window. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Nottingham Forest will be bidding to end a 29-year run when they play host to Tottenham Hotspur on Boxing Day. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United will have the chance to sign Victor Osimhen in January in a deal with Napoli that would see one of Rasmus Hojlund, Joshua Zirkzee or Marcus Rashford head in the opposite direction. 26 December 2024 talksport.com Chelsea will always be busy in a transfer window - it's a tale as old as time. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Both beaten by Serie A title contenders just before Christmas, Empoli and Genoa will meet for their final fixture of 2024 on Saturday afternoon. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Aston Villa will be hoping to avoid equalling an 89-year streak when they square off against Newcastle United on Boxing Day. 26 December 2024 talksport.com Damian Lewis may be an award-winning actor - but Zinedine Zidane showed him levels when it came to a performing masterclass. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Arsenal face the prospect of losing out on Athletic Bilbao's Nico Williams, who is reportedly on serious interest to Bayern Munich. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim believes the club are at one of their lowest moments in living memory, and the side face the prospect of entering 2025 in the bottom half of the Premier League. 26 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Hearts vs. Hibernian (Thursday, 12.30pm) Two places separate Edinburgh rivals Hearts and Hibernian in the Scottish Premiership table heading into gameweek 19's Boxing Day derby at Tynecastle Park.