Miguel ‘Piojo’ Herrera returns as manager against Chivas: Tijuana Xolos 2023 Liga MX 2023 Clausura Preview
Credit: Xolos
Game: Chivas vs. Tijuana Xolos
Where Estadio Akron, Zapopan, Guadalajara, Mexico
When: Wednesday, February 15, 2023
Time: 5:05 p.m. PST
TV: Telemundo Deportes, Peacock
The Xoloitzcuintles will be led by a familiar face as, Miguel “Piojo” Herrera, returns as manager of the club he managed from 2015-2017 to play Chivas of Guadalajara, one of the most successful clubs in Liga MX.
Reports from Mexican media tied Herrera as a potential candidate for the Mexican men’s national team, but the job was instead given to former Tigres manager Diego Cocca.
The closing of that opportunity allowed Herrera to return to the border town as manager, where he previously led the club to two top-of-the-table finishes before leaving for Club America in 2017.
Herrera has experience against Chivas with Club America as a part of one of Mexico’s biggest rivalries. He may have a sour taste from that time as he led the team to a poor playoff performance losing twice to Guadalajara in Liga MX’s 2020 Clausura playoffs, that resulted in his dismissal from Club América.
The Xolos are coming off their first win of the season last Friday, in a wild finish where a stoppage-time own-goal against San Luis was the only goal of the match, making it 1-0. Herrera was in attendance and went to his first official practice the next day.
Chivas are eighth on the table with only two more points than Xolos, making the two relatively evenly matched. However, the Xoloitzcuintles, despite having multiple talented players on the attack, have been unable to score on their own in their past two matches.
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Prediction:
A brand new manager leaves a lot up in the air in terms of tactics and overall strategy that Herrera will plan on employing. The Tijuana Xolos did not score on their own in both of their last two matches. Two weeks ago, Necaxa netted a first-minute goal against themselves, and the Xolos could not add to their lead.
Last week, the lone goal of the match came in stoppage time of the second half when a shot seemingly off-target deflected off a defender into the goal. EVT predicts the Tijuana Xolos will lose 2-1, but this time a player for the Xoloitzcuintles will be the one to find the back of the net.
Abraham Zepeda is a bilingual Chula Vista Native covering the Tijuana Xolos for EVT. He spent the summer of 2022 covering San Diego Loyal SC and San Diego Wave FC. He is also currently a student at the University of Oregon pursuing a degree in journalism.