Pachuca wins first leg of Recopa

By: John | June 1st, 2007

Coming off the immense high of winning the local crown, one would expect Pachuca to have a bit of a let down in the first leg of the Recopa vs. Internacional de Porto Allegre. And sure enough, after only 5 minutes, Pachuca found themselves down a goal to the Brazilian visitors in the Estadio Hidalgo. But Pachuca fought back just enough to earn a 2-1 victory over the Libertadores champions. Cristian, “el Chaco” Jimenez equalized for the Tuzos 10 minutes after Alexandre Pato stunned the Huracán with a low stinger past the Pachuca keeper.

After the equalizer, the Brazilians seemed content to let Pachuca bend them, but not break them. The tactic proved successful for the rest of the first half, and most of the second. Pachuca finally broke through when Finals hero Juan Carlos Cacho got by his defender on the right flank and his hard centering pass was deflected into the net by the same Chaco. It was 2-1, pachuca. The Brazilians seemed to wake up after that and threatened Calero’s goal twice. One from a devastating free kick by Miniero which was just inches wide, the last off a free kick which was redirected by Cardoso off the crossbar.

Pachuca has put itself in position to win yet another cup. Unlike most Mexican teams, Pachuca has enjoyed success in South America. They defeated Paranaense in the Sudamericana semis in Brazil, and took the trophy with a victory in Santiago over Colo Colo. With another trophy, Pachuca can firmly stake its claim as one of the Americas’ best