Rising Toluca and Chivas among five Liga MX stories to follow this weekend

Liga MX Week 12 kicks off just two days after mid-week action on Tuesday and Wednesday. Tired legs and minds will have little time to regroup as the Apertura tournament keeps pushing forward to the final stages of the regular season.

A few of the league's biggest teams struggled during Week 11 and will look to quickly recapture some success during this weekend.

Here are five things to watch during Week 12:

1. Toluca stealing the spotlight

Slowly, but surely, Toluca has moved up the league table.

Since Aug. 16, Los Diablos Rojos have scraped together multiple positive results and just one loss in their last seven games. With a good run of form in the past several weeks, Toluca has now landed a spot at third place, and a key opportunity to move up to first.

If the team can secure a win against Santos Laguna, paired with a potential loss by Leon and Pumas failing to find a victory, the squad could emerge as the best in the league in the beginning of October with 25 points.

Although Santos will be home on Saturday night, the likelihood of a Toluca win still seems probable. Los Guerreros are the only side left in Liga MX without a victory at home, and have only scored twice in their last four matches.

2. America halting a serious decline

Back in late August, everything was looking up for America. The Mexico City club had a five-game winning streak, an excellent defensive form, and an impressive rate of scoring.

Since then, Las Aguilas have stumbled into October with three losses in the last four games. The most painful defeat, at the hands of Chivas in the 2-1 Clasico Nacional failure on Sept. 26, seems to have shattered the confidence of the squad who fell to Leon just days later with a 3-0 setback.

Will America bounce back against Chiapas at the Estadio Azteca on Saturday? On paper, the club is the favorite for the match, but the same could have been said in the team's last two losses. Los Jaguares don't have the most intimidating roster, but the attacking duo of Aviles Hurtado and Silvio Romero have been on form recently and could test the home side on Saturday night.

If America fails to win or even find a draw this weekend, the club's biggest rival Chivas would then have a golden opportunity to surpass them on the league table.

3. Chivas' chance to leapfrog America

On Sunday, Chivas will be taking on Pumas at the perfect time. Los Rojiblancos are currently riding high with three wins in a row and are now just two points behind their rivals, America. As for Pumas, the team looked to be a top side in September, but have finished with worrying results during the past few matches.

A 2-1 loss to Cruz Azul on Sept. 19 could have just been a bad day at the office for Pumas, but less than two weeks later, the squad walked away with just a point in the 2-2 draw against Morelia.

Still, Pumas remain favorites in Sunday's match as they are the most impressive home side in league, not allowing a single goal all season at the Estadio Olimpico Universitario with a 5-0-0 record. Yet, those statistics aren't an indication that it will be easy to beat Chivas.

The Guadalajara club has been buoyed by striker Omar Bravo, who has collected nine goals in his last eight matches. His impressive form has been supported by other key members like Raul Lopez in defense and Jose Antonio Rodriguez in goal.

A win on Sunday for Chivas, along with a loss for America, would boost the already high morale of the squad.

4. Leon aim to avoid another poor result

Although Leon is justifiably at the No. 1 spot, the team hasn't looked like the best in the league during throughout September.

Both Chiapas and Queretaro found victories over Los Panzas Verdes last month, and nearly pushed them out of their place as league leaders. Luckily for Leon, a powerful start to the season has kept the club afloat at the top spot in the league table.

On Saturday, Leon will look to avoid another bad result when the team travels to Monterrey to take on Los Rayados -- a club on a bad run of form.

Monterrey has its own set of problems without a single victory since Aug. 15. To make matters worse, it only has one Apertura win at its new BBVA Bancomer stadium.

Considering those circumstances, Monterrey is desperate and could be a sleeping giant as it has a significant amount of attacking power on the roster. Leon needs to stay motivated or it could let its top spot slip away.

5. Tigres attack needs to get back on track

The powerful Tigres attack with Andre-Pierre Gignac, Javier Aquino, and Jurgen Damm, has failed to find a goal during the past two matches. As a result of those scoring issues, the team has failed to pick any points in that span.

Headed into their match against Atlas in Guadalajara, Tigres must find a way to get points this weekend or there may be some serious concern for the seventh-placed team.

In Saturday's match, Los Auriazules hope that Atlas' inconsistency plays in their favor. While Los Zorros appear to have gained some a small amount of momentum in the past few weeks, their success has largely come off playing weaker clubs.

With Tigres striker Rafael Sobis returning from his suspension, he could get his club back on track this weekend.