In the Apertura 2012, Monarcas Morelia had a good season where they ended in fourth place of the table standings with 31 points just below Santos Laguna, Monterrey, and Club America. The team which was well coached by Tomas Boy, and whose offense had a good 25 goals, was led by strikers Miguel Sabah and Rafael Marquez Lugo. Once in the playoffs their run for the title was short-lived as they lost against Tigres in the first round; however, the Apertura 2012 was a good season for a team which has been one of the most consistent in the Mexican league in recent years.
Many changes were made to Monarcas before the start of the Apertura 2012 of the new Liga MX. First, after many good seasons with the team, coach Tomas Boy left his position which was replaced by Ruben Omar Romano who is returning to the team where he has had the most coaching success. Under Romano, Morelia had a busy offseason, mostly by selling a large amount of their players like Gerardo Lugo, Rafael Marquez Lugo, Adrian Aldrete, Jaime Lozano, and Luis Alonso Sandoval. All of the players mentioned were regular starters with Morelia which shows that the club is heading into a new direction to gain younger blood. With many important players leaving, Monarcas signed Ecuadorian star Jefferson Montero, Carlos Adrian Morales, and Antonio Pedroza among others. Unfortunately, the quality of the players that arrived does not match the quality of the players that left, therefore Morelia will not be able to match the success of the Apertura 2012 considering other top teams signed a large number of top players.
Morelia will play a new style of soccer under Ruben Omar Romano. Its offense will be led by Jefferson Montero, Joao Rojas and Miguel Sabah, which shows it will be a threat while the defense will remain almost the same. The issue with Morelia is its central midfield as the departure of Gerardo Lugo is a downgrade. This team will compete for big teams in the Clausura 2012, and could gain a playoffs spot, but it will gain less points than last season and nonetheless it is not a favorite to win the title.
Coach: Ruben Omar Romano
Players In: Jefferson Montero, Carlos Adrian Morales, Carlos Ochoa, Antonio Pedroza, Fernando Navarro, Rodrigo Salinas, Francisco Torres, Jose Antonio Olvera
Players Out: Rafael Marquez Lugo, Jorge Gastelum, Luis Alonso Sandoval, Edison Toloza, Adrian Aldrete, Gerardo Lugo, Jaime Lozano, Marvin Cabrera
Players to Watch: Jefferson Montero
Prospect Players: Antonio Pedroza, Fernando Navarro
Possible Lineup: Federico Vilar, Enrique Perez, Mauricio Romero, Joel Huiqui, Carlos Adrian Morales, Christian Valdez, Aldo Leao Ramirez, Rodrigo Salinas, Joao Rojas, Jefferson Montero, Miguel Sabah
Playoffs Contender: Yes
Title Contender: No
Power Ranking: 8 of 18
