By Victor Araiza
For the third straight year, Chivas de Guadalajara will fail to advance out of Phase One/Group Stage of Leagues Cup. At least they managed to come away with a 2–1 victory over FC Cincinnati to end their tournament on a high.
After claiming their first tournament win via penalties earlier, the famed Mexican club recorded its first outright Leagues Cup victory in history. It was also Chivas' first win over Cincinnati after losing their previous two meetings at the Leagues Cup Showcase in 2022 and the 2023 group stage.
As has become tradition between these clubs, the match featured a weather delay that pushed kickoff back by an hour and a half.
Chivas opened the scoring from the spot in the 25th minute, when Efraín Álvarez converted a penalty with a low strike into the bottom-right corner.
Moments later, Armando González nearly doubled the lead, but his 29th-minute effort slammed off the crossbar.
“La Hormiga” González made no mistake in the 57th minute, though, drilling a thunderous right-footed finish into the net. The 22-year-old notched his third goal in four appearances across all competitions.
FC Cincinnati pulled one back in the 67th minute through Andrés Dávila, who connected at the near post with a right-footed finish from a ground pass by Alvas Powell. The goal was the first for the 18-year-old Colombian with Cincinnati’s senior team.
Cincinnati introduced playmaker Evander in the 83rd minute as they chased an equalizer, but Chivas held on to claim the full three points and conclude their Leagues Cup campaign on a high.
REACTIONS
- Chivas Head Coach Gabriel Milito:
- “We came to play with the mindset of winning the game. To win, we really had to show the level that the team had throughout the game, especially in the first half, when we were superior and created a lot of danger.”
- Cincinnati Head Coach Pat Noonan:
- “A lot of guys needed a little bit of a rest, just based on how the last two weeks have played out. In our conversations, we decided this was the group to start the game for us. For the most part, the guys did a good job. While the result, in the end, isn't what we wanted, there's a lot of good individual performances from guys that haven't been getting minutes.”
PLAYERS OF THE MATCH
- Chivas de Guadalajara:
- Efraín Álvarez scored the opening goal and set up the eventual match-winner to take Man of the Match honors.
GAME NOTES
- FC Cincinnati was eliminated from advancing with the defeat.
- Cincinnati native Nick Hagglund made his 150th appearance with the club.
- Andrés Dávila scored his debut goal with the MLS club.
- Chivas de Guadalajara won in regulation for the first time in the Leagues Cup.
- Armando González scored his first Leagues Cup goal.
CARDS/INJURY REPORT
- Yellow Cards
- Cincinnati: Teenage Hadebe
- Chivas de Guadalajara: Miguel Gómez, Teun Wilke
LOOKING AHEAD
- FC Cincinnati will host Charlotte FC on Sunday as it seeks to stay among the top seeds in the Eastern Conference on the road to the MLS Cup Playoffs.
- Chivas de Guadalajara returns to its Liga MX Apertura 2025 campaign by visiting Santos Laguna on Sunday.
