Football
Tom Marshall, Mexico correspondent 7y

Tigres' Andre-Pierre Gignac 'the best player in the league' - Chivas' Almeyda

Chivas coach Matias Almeyda saw his team come so close to victory in Thursday's 2017 Clausura final first leg, but a 2-0 lead against Tigres became 2-2 thanks to a late brace from French striker Andre-Pierre Gignac.

"Gignac is the best player in the league and you can never lose concentration [against him]," Almeyda said in the postgame news conference.

Gignac swept in his first in the 85th minute with a driven left-footed shot and then added the equalizer three minutes later when he latched onto a through-ball, rounded keep Rodolfo Cota and finished into the roof of the net from a tight angle.

"Our plan was working [at 2-0 up] ... but we faced a crack who touched the ball twice and scored two goals," stressed Almeyda. "The second goal comes from a different kind of player. Even though there was an error, the finish was really impeccable."

Gignac didn't stop to talk to the media at length after the game but did tell ESPN that his goals were the fruits of the whole team and said the fans in Estadio Universitario were incredible.

Former Tigres striker Alan Pulido had opened the scoring and Rodolfo Pizarro netted the second to hand Chivas a comfortable half-time lead against favorite Tigres.

But despite the way the home side came back, Almeyda believes his team is in good shape ahead of Sunday's second leg in Estadio Chivas.

"Psychologically we are perfect," he said. "There are 90 minutes left and I have a team of warriors."

Chivas will attempt to record a rare league and cup double in the second leg, while Tigres are going for back-to-back Liga MX titles.

^ Back to Top ^