Glendale, AZ – Club América finished its preseason exhibition tour with a 1-1 draw against EPL giants Manchester United. Miguel ‘Piojo’ Herrera sent out a fairly strong XI to start the game, same is to be said about Manchester United given the World Cup stars who are not with the team.
There was a bit of a “feeling out” period to start the game between the two sides. Manchester United had the best opportunities early on, especially when Juan Mata hit the post in the 15th minute. There was some strong build up by the English side, but nothing ended up transpiring.
Club Amércia, after finding a rhythm, kept a high backline with a strong wing play moving towards the attack. Roger Martínez had the best opportunity for the Liga MX club in the 33rd minute, splitting defenders and sending a missile which was inevitably saved.
The teams went into halftime even at 0-0.
The second half provided more action for the 37,766 in attendance at University of Phoenix Stadium, as Henry Martín headed home a beauty to open up the scoring in the 59th minute for Club América.
Although América made a plethora of changes, they seemed to be poised in the face of a very strong team in Manchester United. However, Manchester United finally bullied their way to a goal in the 78th minute thanks from a strike from Juan Mata.
The final score of 1-1 was fair for both sides, as both teams will walk away happy from the exhibition. For Club América, there was a lot of interesting things to see in this match, especially from the younger players.
It also helps that Henry Martín found the back of the net right before the new Liga MX season is about to start. “(I am) very happy. It’s every footballer’s dream to score against a club like (Manchester United),” said Martín.
The news that Cecilio Domínguez and Jérémy Ménez will be out an extended period of time means that players like Henry Martín will need to help carry the load in the attacking end for América. Yet, if the team links up like they did on Thursday night, that just might not be a problem.
