Atlas earn big first-leg win as goalkeeper blanks Pachuca | OneFootball

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Armen Bedakian·27 May 2022

Atlas earn big first-leg win as goalkeeper blanks Pachuca

Article image:Atlas earn big first-leg win as goalkeeper blanks Pachuca

Atlas defeated Pachuca 2-0 in the first leg of the 2022 Clausura Final, as goalkeeper Camilo Vargas played hero with a number of key saves to give his team a massive advantage heading into the final match.

Scorers: Reyes 26′; Quiñones 93′


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The first goal of the game came midway through the first half, as Atlas forward Luis Reyes found the back of the net with a thundering header off a perfectly-weighted cross floated into the box by José Abella.

Pachuca came close to finding an equalizer late in the first half, as Víctor Guzmán got his own bullet header on goal.

However, his effort was saved at point-blank range by Atlas goalkeeper Vargas, which sent the Jalisco Stadium into a frenzy.

Atlas would hold that precious 1-0 lead into half-time, grateful for the slender advantage as Pachuca kept pace on nearly every statistical metric over the opening 45 minutes.

Pachuca ramped up the attacking pressure in the second half, with an early rocket volley smacking fortuitously off the crossbar sparing an outstretched Vargas his blushes.

However, a comfortable stop on a follow-up header minutes later assured Atlas supporters of their goalkeeper’s dominant display on the evening.

Not content with taking a narrow margin of victory over to the second leg, Atlas doubled their advantage in the 93rd minute as Julián Andrés Quiñones tucked the ball away after catching the Pachuca defenders for a breakaway run.

Article image:Atlas earn big first-leg win as goalkeeper blanks Pachuca

The defending Apertura champions Atlas, who had previously not won a Liga MX title since 1951, now hold a two-goal cushion heading into the Estadio Hidalgo.

These two teams next meet on May 29th for the second leg of the 2022 Liga MX Clausura Final.