Saturday’s two return legs saw Chivas and Cruz Azul go through at the expense of Tigres and Tecos, respectively.

Saturday’s match in Guadalajara saw Chivas run off Tigres 3-2, moving forward on a 6-4 aggregate score.

Leading 3-1 after the first leg, the return leg was a strange one, with all 5 goals coming either from penalties or own goals. Javier Saavedra’s own goal in the 75th minute was one of those classic bonehead mistakes as he tried to play the ball around the post and put it into his own net.

Cruz Azul breezed through thanks to two 1-0 victories over Tecos in a tie in which they were rarely threatened. Richard Nuñez scored both goals in the tie with the 2nd leg in Mexico City played during a strong rain shower. Tecos’ best chance came early on in the return leg when Diego Colotto hit the post, but it wasn’t to be for the modest Guadalajara side.

Sunday brought a rematch of the best game in these playoffs, as América and Atlas played for a spot in the semifinals after a thrilling 3-3 game on Thursday. This time around, Cuauhtémoc Blanco, in his last season in Mexico, had a hand in the first three América goals, scoring two (one through a penalty) and setting up Santiago Fernandez’s easy header as the Águilas eventually won 4-1, going through on a 7-4 aggregate.

The only tie to feature any kind of drama at the end was the last one, with top-seeded Pachuca needing that status to move forward, advancing after tieing Santos 2-2 on aggregate, but advancing on the Mexican League’s higher-seed advances rule. Both games ended 1-1, and after Fernando Salazar put Pachuca ahead in Sunday’s return leg, Walter Jimenez equalized soon after off a corner, giving Santos a chance. There would be no miracle like there was last week at San Luis, as the Tuzos held on.

That sets up another couple of interesting semifinals, with one a repeat of the Apertura playoff semifinals.

That’s right: Chivas-América. We’ll have two superclassicos in the span of a week. We’ll see whether this tie or América’s impending tie in the Copa Libertadores quarterfinals with Santos FC of Brasil will take precedence. The Águilas host Santos on Wednesday and will probably host Chivas on Thursday.

Pachuca-Cruz Azul will be the Battle of Borgetti, as the Cruz Azul striker goes up against the team he left so controversially just a few years ago. We’ll see if Pachuca can overcome the hiccups they suffered this week against Santos to play like we know they’re capable of.

Matchups:

1. Pachuca vs. 8. Santos

Thursday: Pachuca at Santos – Azteca America – 7 PM ET / 6 PM CT / 4 PM PT live
Sunday: Santos at Pachuca – Azteca America – 9 PM ET / 8 PM CT / 6 PM PT live

Pachuca will be looking to add their third title in a few months with the Clausura and cement their place as the best team in Mexico at the moment. Santos, on the other hand, is just glad to be here, saving themselves from relegation on the last day of the season.

Prediction: Pachuca advances

2. Chivas vs. 7. Tigres

Wednesday: Chivas at Tigres – Telefutura – 7:30 PM ET / 6:30 PM CT / 4:30 PM PT live
Saturday: Tigres at Chivas – Telefutura – 9 PM ET / 8 PM CT / 6 PM PT live

Chivas would love to add another title to further distance themselves from America and wrest the title of Mexico’s best team from Pachuca. Tigres need to turn around an up and down regular season and use their home advantage in the first leg to have any chance.

Prediction: Chivas advance

3. América vs. 6. Atlas

Thursday: América at Atlas – Telefutura – 10 PM ET / 9 PM CT / 7 PM PT tape delay
Sunday: Atlas at América – Telefutura – 6 PM ET / 5 PM CT / 3 PM PT live

América is in a tough spot right now. They’re keeping 8 of their first-team regulars in Mexico instead of sending them to Tuesday’s Copa Libertadores game in Chile against Colo Colo, a tie in which they hold a 3-0 advantage. Atlas will be looking to take advantage of the first leg, something they need to do to have a chance. With Andres Guardado, however, anything is possible.

Prediction: Atlas advances

4. Cruz Azul vs. 5. UAG Tecos

Wednesday: Cruz Azul at UAG Tecos – Azteca America – 9:30 PM ET / 8:30 PM CT / 6:30 PM PT live
Saturday: UAG Tecos at Cruz Azul – Azteca America – 6 PM ET / 5 PM CT / 3 PM PT live

A matchup that Cruz Azul should win, but they haven’t performed up to expectations this season. With Jared Borgetti, Cesar Delgado and Miguel Sabah, they should be scoring goals aplenty, but aren’t. Emanuel Villa is still a question mark for Tecos, who have been one of the surprise packages this tournament. If Pony Ruiz, Hugo Droguett and Eduardo Lillingston can score some goals, they could surprise some folks.

Prediction: Tecos advance