February 13 – With a three-nil lead from the 1st leg of their Champions Cup two-legged affair versus Vancouver FC, Mexican powerhouse, Cruz Azul, coasted to an eight-nil aggregate win.
A hat trick from Luka Romero (pictured) underpinned the five-goal dismantling of Vancouver.
At the fourth biggest stadium in Mexico, the Estadio Cuauhtémoc was only partially full for this display of ruthless attacking football.
From the opening whistle, La Máquina Celeste showed that they were a class above their Canadian opposition; however, to give credit to Martin Nash’s team, they did hold out until the 37th minute, but once Jeremy Márquez slipped a sensational through ball to Romero, the dam would break.
Just eight minutes later, Romero had his brace, after the simplest of near-post headers with the Vancouver backline completely lost in its defensive shape.
With a five-nil lead, Nicolás Larcamón could use the second half as a practice match of sorts, and the seven-time champions did exactly that with 45 minutes that oozed confidence and sophistication.
Romero completed his hat trick in the 62nd minute with a blistering left-footed strike that Callum Irving in the Vancouver net might be disappointed he didn’t do better with.
Six minutes later, a really cute corner kick routine found Jorge Rodarte, who powered home Andrés Montaño’s pinpoint cross to make it four-nil on the night and seven-nil on aggregate.
The final nail in the coffin saw some sloppy defending from the reeling Canadians, allowing Nicolás Ibañez to slam home from close range to complete the rout.
While some will say that this was a mismatch from the beginning due to Vancouver still in pre-season mode and Cruz Azul, a gorilla of the Concacaf region, a bigger picture is emerging.
Canadian clubs need this kind of big game experience. Money can’t buy it; only living it and feeling the power of top players can expose you to the levels required to compete. Vancouver will head back to Canada, and they’ll be wiser for the 180 minutes they suffered at the hands of one of the best teams in the region.
La Máquina, meanwhile, will luxuriate in scoring eight goals, playing untested personnel, safe in the knowledge that bigger tests are awaiting them in the round of 16 in the form of CF Monterrey in March.
This clash promises to be an epic as the two clubs have a long and storied history together.
Final Score: Cruz Azul 5 – 0 Vancouver FC (8-0 Aggregate)