MIAMI, Florida – The 2021 Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League quarterfinals were wrapped up on Wednesday night with Concacaf giants Monterrey and Club America advancing to the next round.
Here are five takeaways from Wednesday’s matches:
Meza and Janssen a dynamic duo
The dynamic duo of Maximiliano Meza and Vincent Janssen made the difference for Monterrey in Wednesday’s 3-0 win over Columbus Crew SC. The two players hooked up twice inside the first half-hour to all but seal Rayados’ place in the semifinals, with Meza scoring the goals and Janssen assisting on both scores. That type of chemistry will be a very positive thing for Head Coach Javier Aguirre moving forward.
Monterrey unbeatable vs. MLS at BBVA
Much of Monterrey’s past SCCL history took place at the old Estadio Tecnologico, but the BBVA Stadium, which has housed Rayados since 2015, has already built up its fair share of history, including Monterrey’s incredible stretch of performances against MLS opponents. With the 3-0 win over Columbus, Monterrey have won all three of their matches against MLS opponents at BBVA Stadium by a combined score of 11-0. In the 2019 SCCL, Rayados claimed 3-0 and 5-0 wins over Atlanta United and Sporting Kansas City, followed by Wednesday’s triumph.
Vinas and Suarez rise to the fore
Another dynamic duo from a Mexican club in action on Wednesday night was Federico Vinas and Leonardo Suarez of Club America in the 3-1 win over the Portland Timbers. Vinas scored the first two Club America goals of the night before Suarez tacked on a late insurance goal right when Portland had hopes of a comeback. Vinas’ second score also came courtesy of a penalty earned by Suarez when he was fouled in the Portland penalty area. When Las Aguilas needed a decisive result, those two came through with big performances.
Another semifinal for Club America
Whenever Club America participate in the SCCL, they are a pretty good bet to reach the semifinal stage of the tournament. Outside of their SCCL debut in the 2013-14 edition when they failed to advance past the group stage, Club America have reached the semifinals in their last five SCCL appearances. The 4-2 aggregate win against the Timbers means that Club America will be playing in the SCCL semifinals for the second straight year and the third time in the last four tournaments.
Liga MX cornering the competition again
At the start of the quarterfinal stage, Liga MX only accounted for three of the eight places, but with the dust now settled, all three have stayed alive – Cruz Azul, Monterrey and Club America – and once again the SCCL semifinals will be dominated by Liga MX clubs. One has to go back to the 2014-15 edition for the last time Liga MX did not have at least half of the teams involved in the SCCL semifinals when Club America was joined by the Montreal Impact of MLS and Costa Rican clubs Herediano and Alajuelense. Even then, Club America would emerge with the crown and history suggests that the SCCL trophy has a good chance to end up in Liga MX hands once again in 2021.
