Club America will host Club Tijuana at the Estadio Azteca this Saturday, October 20, 2018, in a Week 13 matchup in the Liga MX 2018 Apertura. Both teams have an extensive history of trading players and even managers as Miguel Herrera previously went from America to Xolos and back to America, here are five players that have represented Los Azulcremas and Los Rojinegros.
Dario Benedetto
There are currently rumors placing the Argentine striker with the LA Galaxy, but before his days with Boca Juniors, Benedetto rose to fame with Club Tijuana. “El Pipa” was one of Xolos’ best players from 2013-2015 with 21 total goals in 43 games, which earned him a move to Club America. Benedetto did not live up to his price tag with Las Aguilas, but had some great moments including a tremendous performance in the 2015 CONCACAF Champions League.
Javier Guemez
The Sinaloa native is currently living a great moment as he is back on the Mexico national team radar after a few years of absence. Guemez played in Tijuana around the same time as Benedetto and was sold to Club America around the same time as well. The Mexican midfielder really failed to live up to the expectations with Las Aguilas with just 30 games played in 4 tournaments and no goals scored before making his move to Queretaro.
Juan Carlos Valenzuela
When Miguel Herrera landed in Tijuana in 2016 so did Juan Carlos Valenzuela as he has followed the Mexican manager in his career. Valenzuela played with Club America from 2009-2014 where he was part of two Liga MX title-winning teams, one with “Piojo”. The Mexican defender then moved to Atlas in 2015 and finally with Xolos in 2016, where he has made nearly 100 appearances with the club. “Topo” is the Xolos current team captain, but has lost his starting job this season as he has clearly regressed with age.
Guido Rodriguez
Club America currently has five former Xolos’ players on its roster and arguably the most notable one is Guido Rodriguez. The Argentine midfielder started off his career with River Plate, but really started to gain notoriety in his stint with Club Tijuana from 2016-2017, where he even earned a callup to the Argentina national team. Miguel Herrera brought Rodriguez with him when he made the move from Xolos back to Club America and the 24-year-old has not disappointed being a vital part of the team.
Henry Martin
Martin scored just five goals with Xolos in three years (2014-2017), but already has six goals since joining Club America in the Clausura 2018. The Yucatan native has resurrected his career with Los Azulcremas and has constantly been on the national team radar recently.
