In a friendly match during the International break, Chivas of Guadalajara will play Monarcas Morelia at Chukchansi Park in Fresno, California this Wednesday, March 22, 2017 (7:00 PM Pacific). Both teams will be missing players and the game will be played at a minor league baseball stadium, this should make for an interesting encounter.
Chivas is currently in first place in the Liga MX and will be looking to test younger players in this match. Matias Almeyda will be missing Oswaldo Alanis and Orbelin Pineda for the match because the pair will be playing for the Mexican national team. This still leaves some very high-profile players on Chivas’ roster for the match like Rodolfo Pizarro and Alan Pulido.
Almeyda may use these players or opt to give some younger players an opportunity like he has been doing in the Copa MX. Some of the younger players that may feature in the match for the ‘tapatios’ include Michelle Benitez and Alejandro Zendejas. Chivas could also take advantage of the game and use a full squad with only two key players missing from the starting XI.
Roberto Hernandez will also be missing some players in Andy Polo and Raul Ruidiaz who will be representing Peru in CONMEBOL qualifiers. Monarcas Morelia is coming off a huge 1-0 win over Puebla last Sunday, which catapulted the team to seventh place, now with 15 points. Morelia is the last team people expected to make the playoffs this Clausura but the takeover by Roberto Hernandez as manager has worked wonders for the team.
While Polo and Ruidiaz have been the standouts on the team by far, other players like Jefferson Cuero and Diego Valdes have also stood out on ‘la monarquia’. For the most part, both teams will have full rosters for the match and it should be an entertaining game at the home of the Fresno Grizzlies this Wednesday.
