In an anticlimactic draw, Pachuca and Club America failed to do any damage to each other in a scoreless draw on Sunday.
Perhaps because of the extra matches played in the CONCACAF Champions League, both Pachuca and Club America seemed a bit deflated throughout the match. Their game play wasn't horrible, but it lacked energy and initiative.
Here are three of the biggest talking points from the game.
1. Excuses don't erase disappointments
Pachuca's excuse might have possibly been that the club's players were still stunned by their last-second elimination to the Montreal Impact in CCL play. Club America, who progressed comfortably in the same tournament with a 5-0 aggregate goal total over Saprissa, might have had it so easy that their players were lulled into a somnambulant state they still hadn't snapped out of against Pachuca.
For whatever reason, chances for both sides went begging throughout the match.
Club America at least had more shots in the game, as various players tried their luck a total of times. Despite these efforts, however, only three shots were on target. Pachuca demonstrated in some ways more patience, since the club actually maintained a greater percentage of the possession than Club America, Still, their shot total was a paltry six, with only one of those on target.
It was a sad spectacle for a match that many had anticipated. The young and dynamic talents of Club America's Darwin Quintero and Pachuca's Jurgen Damm shone at times, but only briefly.
2. Quintero still hasn't fit in well
Quintero's gifts as a speedy striker are underutilized in the midfield and Club America haven't yet hit a winning percentage during the league matches with his involvement. In this game, he ran back and forth to little avail.
It's a bit strange to see a player so talented have so little impact on a match. However, that's been the story of Quintero's stint with Club America. He has played better at times than others, but at no point has he looked completely comfortable and integrated well into the Club America attack.
3. Every draw has a silver lining
One positive that Club America can take out of the match is that Oribe Peralta seems to have indeed recovered from the hard knock he took in the team's last game. He was active in setting up a few quality chances, including one on which he laid off the ball for Michael Arroyo, who blasted the ball just wide. Considering the hard hit he took to the head, it's reassuring that Peralta was able to resiliently bounce back and play as actively as ever.
Ultimately, it didn't change anything, however,
A small comfort for the Aguilas squad is that with the top team in Liga MX, Tijuana, also held to a draw, Club America hasn't really lost any more ground in the fight for league leadership. Yet that also means the team lost a golden opportunity to make up some of the points needed to jump to the top of the table.
It's notable anytime a team of stars fails to shine, but that's happening on a more regular basis to Club America. As a temporary blip, it's not much to worry about, but if this trend of tired play and unimaginative performances continues, Club America will be in trouble and coach Gustavo Matosas will be considered a failure.