Chivas fought to the end, but fell to Toluca in the AP26 opener | OneFootball

Guadalajara began its Apertura 2026 campaign with a 2-0 loss to Toluca at Estadio AKRON in the Matchday 1 clash.

Although the Rebaño got off to a good start and tried to set the tone from the opening minutes, the Scarlet side took the lead before halftime from the penalty spot. In the second half, Chivas played much of the match with one man down, but never stopped looking for the opponent’s goal.

Despite the adversity, Gabriel Milito’s team stayed in the fight until the final whistle, creating several chances that they were unable to convert on the scoreboard.

Now, the Rebaño must turn the page and focus on its next commitment. Next Saturday, Chivas will return to the Fortaleza Rojiblanca to host Juárez on Matchday 2 of Apertura 2026, aiming to earn its first three points of the tournament.

Goals

- In the 41st minute, Alexis Vega opened the scoring from the penalty spot for the visitors.- In the 73rd minute, Jesús Gallardo doubled Toluca’s lead.

Dangerous chances

- In the 15th minute, a great sequence of combination play around the edge of the box ended at the feet of Richard Ledezma, who fired a shot that went close to the opponent’s goal.- In the 19th minute, Roberto Alvarado appeared inside the box and hit a right-footed shot on target, but the Scarlet defense managed to deflect the ball out for a corner.- On the following play, in the 21st minute, Daniel Aguirre rose highest and connected with a strong header that just went wide of the goalkeeper’s right post.- In the 23rd minute, Kevin Castañeda controlled the ball on the edge of the box and found Ángel Sepúlveda, who tried to surprise with a chipped shot that went just inches wide of the opponent’s goal.- In the 32nd minute, Castañeda let fly from distance and unleashed a rocket that skimmed the top-left corner of the opponent’s goal, coming within inches of a stunning strike.- In the 47th minute, after a throw-in, ‘Cuate’ Sepúlveda again won the ball in the air and powered a header that forced a great save from Luis García to preserve the visitors’ lead.- In the 57th minute, a through ball left Armando González one-on-one with the goalkeeper. The academy product hit a powerful shot, but García reacted brilliantly to prevent the Rojiblanco goal.- Just a minute later, in the 58th minute, ‘Piojo’ Alvarado rose inside the box to meet a precise cross from Bryan González with a header, but the Scarlet goalkeeper held onto the ball.- In the 66th minute, Roberto Alvarado broke down the right flank and sent a low ball in for Brian Gutiérrez, who struck it first time, although his shot went over the crossbar. - In the 73rd minute, Bryan González came up with a cross-shot toward the right post, but Luis García stepped in again to send the ball out for a corner.

Chivas 0-2 TolucaGoals: Alexis Vega (41’, pen.) and Jesús Gallardo (73’).Referee: Daniel Quintero Huitrón.Estadio AKRON.

Lineups

Chivas: 1 José Rangel; 3 Diego Campillo (Miguel Gómez 85’), 23 Daniel Aguirre (17 Ricardo Marín 85’), 5 Bryan González; 6 Omar Govea (33 Jordan Carrillo 67’), 28 Fernando González, 7 Luis Romo, 37 Richard Ledezma (34 Armando González 55’), 19 Kevin Castañeda (11 Brian Gutiérrez 45’); 25 Roberto Alvarado (YC 52’) and 9 Ángel Sepúlveda (RC 47’).

Head coach: Gabriel Milito.

Toluca: 22 Luis García; 6 Andrés Pereira, 19 Santiago Simón, 20 Jesús Gallardo (YC 60’), 25 Everardo López; 5 Franco Romero (YC 19’), 8 Nicolás Castro (4 Bruno Méndez 87’), 29 Jorge Díaz, 10 Jesús Angulo (24 Fernando Arce 87’), 35 Erick Gutiérrez (11 Helinho 59’) and 9 Alexis Vega (7 Víctor Guzmán 69’).

Head coach: Antonio Mohamed.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.