Guadalajara.— The Atlas is in the moment of resurrection. A fiery and unrecognizable Atlas from what was the start of the contest, added his second consecutive victory by beating Necaxa 3-1.
With the victory at the Estadio Victoria, he reached 20 points, established himself in the Repechage zone, and now only hopes that Pumas loses against América, in order to guarantee their qualification to the Final Phase with one day of the phase remaining to be played. Regular Clausura 2023.
In Atlas’s victory, the double of Julián Quiñones stood out, who confirmed his status as a lethal scorer by reaching 12 goals in the tournament, one behind the scoring leader, Henry Martín, in addition to registering 34 as a red and black player.
The other figure was Brian ‘Huevo’ Lozano, who opened the scoring to add his fifth goal from a direct free kick and his sixth in Clausura 2023.
The truth is that Atlas had a normal rival in Necaxa and that he offered little resistance, and with some flashes of danger, but without turning on red lights.
At minute 9, Roger Méndez hit a cross to the left of José Hernández, but the ball went wide.
After settling in on the field, Julián Quiñones gave the first warning with his typical cut to a defender, but his shot was not directed at the net.
Atlas was already on top and a direct free kick was generated at 21′ for Brian Lozano to define flawlessly for 1-0.
It didn’t take long for Atlas to increase the lead with a cross from Ozziel Herrera that Julián Quiñones closed for 2-0 at 23′.
Necaxa reacted with a shot from Ricardo Monreal that hit the post at 30′, and another arrival from Monreal himself at 33′, but the goalkeeper Hernández rejected it.
The final stretch of the first half was perfect for Atlas. Julián Quiñones scored by beating Hugo González on his way out, his goal was canceled of course out of place, and after checking in the VAR it was validated for 3-0 at 44′.
Fortune was on the side of Atlas, since, in compensation time, at 45 (+3), Necaxa tied with a goal from Edgar Méndez, but the VAR reviewed the action, and determined the Spaniard was out of place to maintain the 3- 0.
In the second half, Atlas trusted, fell behind, Necaxa with its limitations tried to shorten the distance, and succeeded at 82′, with a shot from Edgar Méndez to make it 3-1.
However, Necaxa did not show any more arguments, and Atlas endured the final minutes and knew how to defend his advantage to ensure his victory that puts him one step away from the Repechage.
