[odds data-token=’UJ2gbtVWuWqFWDI6PTEGE19SrsbwSYEVQ5fiLbXr’ class=’odds-1-centered’ data-lang=’en’ data-odds-format=’american’]
The odds for this match are provided by William Hill. Click on the odds below to head to William Hill and place a bet. Get a $500 Risk-Free bet at William Hill with bonus code ‘WSNRF‘.
Last week wasn’t the most exciting start to the 2021 Apertura season for Chivas de Guadalajara.
As the standout favorites over Atletico San Luis, Chivas failed to capitalize on several chances in their 2-1 loss at home against the worst Liga MX team of the last 12 months.
Coupled with the absence of starters, it could take some time before Chivas start to get going.
Up against a Puebla side that are capable of challenging possession-heavy teams, Chivas might go through another week without a win.
With up-and-coming manager Nicolas Larcamon still involved in the setup, Puebla have a fighting chance for at least a point against what will arguably be a stronger opposition.
Pick the tie for Puebla vs Chivas (+205).
Puebla vs Chivas de Guadalajara Information | |
Teams | Puebla vs Chivas de Guadalajara |
Location | Estadio Cuauhtemoc (Puebla, Mexico) |
Time | Friday, July 30th at 7:00pm PT/10:00pm ET |
How to Watch | TUDN, UniMas |
It truly was a dismal first week of the Liga MX season for Chivas.
Despite their 14 shots and 69% possession against San Luis, they couldn’t find a way to defeat the team that would have recently been relegated, were it not for a change to the league format.
With no major new signings — and players missing that are in the Olympics — Chivas missed chance after chance.
In fact, their lone goal arrived only through a penalty in the 79th minute.
Puebla, on the other hand, were able to secure an away point against a powerhouse in Liga MX.
As the clear underdogs, Puebla and Larcamon were defensively impressive in their 1-1 away draw against Monterrey in Week 1.
Even after going down to 10 players (and eventually nine during the final minutes), Puebla held strong and only allowed four shots on target in the tie.
Assuming that Puebla will go with a similar strategy on Friday, it could be a long night for the visiting side.
This isn’t anything new.
Last season, it wasn’t out of the ordinary to see Chivas lack efficiency in the final third.
And as for this season, the first match of the Apertura gave no indication that anything would be changing soon.
With players like Alexis Vegas, Uriel Antuna, and Jesus Ricardo Angulo involved in the Olympics and gone from Chivas’ frontline, they now have a weakened attack.
Keep in mind, Chivas will also need to find a replacement at the striker position for Jose Juan Macias, who is currently on loan with Getafe in La Liga.
Larcamon’s success from early 2021 might have some staying power.
Regardless of Puebla trading away a few of their best over the summer transfer window, they continued to look defensively solid and dangerous through counters in their season-opener.
As mentioned earlier, they were also able to do this after they went down to 10 men in the 1st half.
Puebla eventually got the deserved 1-1 draw against Monterrey, and no matter who will replace their two suspended players, it’s become obvious that most can thrive in Larcamon’s approach.
We saw hints of it in their latest loss, but Chivas can at times be too ponderous or cautious under manager Victor Manuel Vucetich.
Choosing to not step up as much as other high-pressing teams, Vucetich instead prefers a build-up play that focuses on possessing much of the ball.
Unfortunately for Vucetich, this is exactly the style of play that Larcamon loves to go up against.
In what is typically a 3-5-2, Puebla are capable of sitting deep and then throwing plenty of numbers forward through quick transitions.
Vucetich could perhaps attempt to employ a similar style to throw Puebla off, but that isn’t a system that his squad are likely unaccustomed to.
We support responsible gambling. Gambling can be addictive, please play responsibly. If you need help, call 1-800-Gambler.
WSN.com is managed by Gentoo Media. Unless declared otherwise, all of the visible content on this site, such as texts and images, including the brand name and logo, belongs to Innovation Labs Limited (a Gentoo Media company) - Company Registration Number C44130, VAT ID: MT18874732, @GIG Beach Triq id-Dragunara, St. Julians, STJ3148, Malta.
Advertising Disclosure: WSN.com contains links to partner websites. When a visitor to our website clicks on one of these links and makes a purchase at a partner site, World Sports Network is paid a commission.
Copyright © 2024