Club León have had the upper hand in the recent meetings with Mazatlán. They have beaten the opponents in four of the last five meetings and will be looking to keep that good run going.
However, Mazatlan have lost just once in their last five league games this season. Club Leon have two defeats in their last three matches and have been leaking goals in Apertura – conceding 13 goals in 7 matches, just two less than the rock bottom side Queretaro.
When the two sides met earlier this season in Clausura, Club Leon edged out a 2-1 win over Mazatlan. Santiago Colombatto and Santiago Colombatto scored late in the first half to hand Club Leon a 2-0 lead before the break, but Roberto Meraz halved the deficit before the hour mark.
Mazatlan dominated the second half and had 57% possession as they chased the equalizer. However, despite having 12 shots at goal, they could not manage to get another one across the line and ended up losing 2-1.
The last meeting in Apertura was fairly one-sided with Club Leon dominating the whole game. They needed another late goal in the first half to take the lead, with Ángel Mena finding the back of the net in the 42nd minute.
Victor Dávila and Emanuel Gigliotti scored in the second half to make things better and hand the home side a 3-0 lead. Gigliotti had the chance to score his second of the game in the 87th minute, but he missed his penalty, and the game ended with the same score line.
The last time Mazatlan defeated Club Leon was in the 2021 edition of Clausura. Luis Montes and Victor Dávila handed Leon a comfortable 2-0 lead before the half-hour mark, before Michael Rangel managed to pull one back for the home side in the 43rd minute.
Giovanni Augusto equalized in the 55th minute and the game was turned on its head after Club Leon’s Andrés Mosquera scored an own goal. Michael Rangel had a goal ruled out in the 70th minute, but he got his name on the scoresheet by finding the back of the net again three minutes later. Ángel Mena pulled one back for Leon in the 96th minute to minute to make it 4-3 after Luis Montes was sent off.
Club León Are Leaking Goals and Have Just One Clean Sheet This Season
Club León finished outside the playoff spots in Clausura earlier this year after they drew their final match of the league stage. They needed a win or one of Mazatlan and Pumas to drop points to make it through but things went against them.
To ensure they avoided a repeat of it, Byron Castillo, Julien Célestine, and Javier Ibarra were signed in the summer, with Paul Bellón lured in on a free transfer. Lucas Di Yorio and Alfonso Alvarado have been loaned in to bolster the squad, while Óscar Villa and Juan Rangel have also been promoted from the U20 side.
They started off the season well with a late 2-1 win over Atletico de San Luis. Lucas Di Yorio scored the winner in the 93rd minute after Byron Castillo’s own goal canceled out Federico Martínez’s goal in the first half.
However, they could not carry the momentum into the next game and were 3-0 down to Pumas at the start of the second half. Osvaldo Rodríguez was sent off for Club Leon in the first, making a comeback almost impossible. Lucas Di Yorio scored twice and Joel Campbell added another to do the impossible, and Club Leon managed to pull off a stunning 3-3 draw.
They drew with Puebla and Guadalajara in the next two matches before Toluca handed them their first loss of the season. Daniel Álvarez scored in the 90th minute of the game to stun Club Leon and hand the away side a much deserved 1-0 win.
It was Club Leon’s turn to score a late winner and Ángel Mena did that in the game against Club America. He scored from the spot in the 115th minute of the match after 10 minutes were added on, and VAR took time to confirm a late penalty. Henry Martín scored twice in the game for Club America, but it was not enough as Victor Dávila and Osvaldo Rodríguez helped the home team take the lead twice.
However, Club Leon were thrashed in the next game when they faced Monterrey. The home side won the match 5-1 with Byron Castillo managing to get the lone goal for the away team.
Mazatlán Ended Their Winless Streak Last Weekend
Mazatlán stole the final playoff spot in Clausura earlier this season from Club Leon on the final day of the league stage. They stunned the fans and rival clubs by winning their last four matches of the season and finishing 12th from an impossible situation.
To build on from there, Efraín Orona, Enrique Cedillo, Fernando Illescas and Josué Colmán have been signed to help Gabriel Caballero select from a large group of players. Yoel Bárcenas has been signed on a free transfer, while Jorge Meré has joined on loan from Club America. Raúl Camacho, Andrés Montaño and Francisco López have earned their promotion from the U20 side.
Iván Moreno, Jorge Zárate, Jesús Zavala, and Gonzalo Freitas have been released while Nicolás Díaz was sold to Club Tijuana. Ygor Nogueira has headed out on loan while Nicolás Benedetti and Richard Ríos have returned to their respective clubs following the expiry of their loan deals.
However, they have not been able to do well on the pitch. Mazatlan started the season with back-to-back losses to Puebla and Tigres UNAL.
The losses were followed by a hattrick of 1-1 draws against Pachuca, Atletico de San Luis, and Pumas UNAM. They seemed to have steadied the ship but were handed a wakeup call by Club Tijuana. Victor Guzmán scored after Carlos Vargas’s own goal to hand Tijuana a 2-goal lead and help seal a comfortable 2-0 win.
Mazatlan were determined to end their winless streak and they managed to do it against Guadalajara. Alfonso Sánchez scored the opening goal of the match in the 69th minute, but their lead lasted just 8 minutes. Angel Zaldívar scored from the rebound after his penalty was saved to level things up. Luckily, Oswaldo Alanís managed to score for Mazatlan in the 87th minute to help them seal a win and collect their first three points of the season.
Other Soccer Games Happening This Week
Bundesliga: Freiburg vs Borussia Dortmund
Liga MX: Club León vs Mazatlán FC
La Liga: Almeria vs Real Madrid
La Liga: Barcelona vs Rayo Vallecano
Premier League: Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur
Premier League: Arsenal vs Leicester City
/fit-in/222x222/frame-1-1.png)
/filters:no_upscale()/fit-in/1200x585/1665739541/leon-vs-mazatlan-predictions-picks-bets.jpg.jpeg "leon-vs-mazatlan-predictions-picks-bets")
/frame-1-1.png )
/1716812021/nikhil-kalro.jpg "Nikhil Kalro")
/dmca.png "Dmca"){kind=small}
/1670944202/21.png "21"){kind=small}
/1670944628/2022-igb-best-casino-affiliate-gig-media-e1651053747946.png "2022 igb best casino affiliate gig media e1651053747946"){kind=small}
/1670944701/gig-media-power-affiliates-rank-123x40-1.png "Gig media power affiliates rank 123x40 1"){kind=icon}
/1670944773/800-gambler-black-144x40.jpg "800 gambler black 144x40"){kind=small}
/1718715753/gpwa.webp "Gpwa"){kind=small}
