2024 Concacaf Champions Cup — Round 1 (Leg 2)
C.D. Guadalajara vs. Forge FC
February 13, 2024 at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT 
Estadio Akron in Zapopan, Mexico
Watch Live: OneSoccer 

The last time Chivas Guadalajara hosted a Concacaf Champions Cup match at Estadio Akron, back in 2018 against Toronto FC, they lifted the competition’s trophy.

It is against that historic backdrop that Canadian Premier League side Forge FC step onto the pitch in Zapopan, Mexico on Tuesday night for the second leg of their round 1 matchup against Chivas. They do so, however, with nothing to lose, knowing that only belief and bravery can carry them to victory.

Forge are faced with the monumental task of overcoming a 3-1 aggregate score after losing by that margin during the home leg at Tim Hortons Field this past Wednesday. A pair of goals by Cade Cowell, who turned provider on a third scored by Ricardo Marín, handed victory to the visitors after Terran Campbell had equalized in the first half for Forge. Forge now know they can compete with the Liga MX side, but will have to do a lot more than match them if they want to progress in this competition.

With away goals in effect, Forge need a minimum of three goals on Tuesday and to win by two goals, to advance to the next round. Should they score three and Chivas score once, the exact result of the first leg, the match will go to extra time. If that doesn’t decide anything, a penalty shootout will follow. Away goals are not counted during extra time.

Making matters even more challenging is just how good Chivas have traditionally been at home, including suffering just one loss in 15 Concacaf Champions Cup matches played as the hosts.

More recently and perhaps relevantly, so far in 16 home matches played in 2023-24 in all competitions, including a 2-1 win over Juárez on Saturday, they have lost just twice. They are currently on a run of six straight matches unbeaten at the Estadio Akron and have allowed three goals against at home just once in that time, a 3-1 loss to Mazatlán back in September under former manager Veljko Paunović.

A 3-0 loss to Pumas UNAM in the Apertura quarter-final second leg and a 4-0 loss to Club América in the Apertura are the only results for Chivas in 28 matches in all competitions during the 2023-24 campaign that were by a scoreline that would see Forge advance should they be able to match it on Tuesday.

The Hamilton club have miraculously overturned a 3-1 scoreline in continental competition before, however. Back in the 2021 Concacaf League, they lost 3-1 to Costa Rican side Santos de Guápiles away from home in the first leg, only to win 3-0 at home courtesy of a late goal from Joshua Navarro. The circumstances this time are certainly different, not least of which because Forge are the road team in the second leg, but it is an important experience of a never-say-die attitude from which the club can draw.

Forge spent a large portion of the preseason down in Querétaro, Mexico, including playing four friendlies against Mexican opposition, to prepare for Tuesday’s contest. They have also previously played in Mexico in this competition, the second leg of their 2022 round of 16 tie against Cruz Azul at Estadio Azteca.

The Hammers have won three of the 11 matches they have played on the road in Concacaf competitions, but have never scored more than twice in a continental away match.

3 THINGS TO WATCH

• Forge look to balance need for goals while protecting against the counter: After the way the first leg played out Forge head into Tuesday’s match with a couple of takeaways. The obvious one is that they are going to have to score at least three goals to stay alive. Also pertinent is the fact that they will have to be careful how they attack given the lethal counter-attack that Chivas displayed in the first leg. One area of improvement that Forge head coach Bobby Smyrniotis mentioned following the match is his side looking to get in behind the Chivas backline a little bit more. Such balls, even if possession is lost, would result in far less dangerous turnovers than playing through the midfield as the Hamilton club did a few times too many this past Wednesday. Forge know they will have to take risks regardless, but would be wise to manage when and where they take those chances.

• How do Forge contain Cade Cowell?: There is no doubt that Forge will have one particular player on their minds after the first leg, U.S. men’s national team attacker Cade Cowell. While Forge actually did pretty well against the talented 20-year-old for the most part, they were made to pay for the moments in which they gave him too much space, as two incredibly clever finishes, and a lovely cross just before halftime, resulted in a man-of-the-match performance. Cowell largely had joy when he was able to find space away from, or overload, Forge fullback Malik Owolabi-Belewu. Whoever is the wide attacker on Cowell’s side for Forge will need to put in a shift to make sure they are back to cover, especially given the speed the California native possesses.

• What does the Chivas squad look like ahead of another tight turnaround?: The benefits in terms of chemistry and quality that Chivas have from being solidly into their domestic season were clearly on display in the first leg. The drawback, however, remains a bit of a headache as once again the Liga MX side deals with fixture congestion. They played at home this past Saturday, a 2-1 win over Juárez, and after hosting Forge on Tuesday travel to play Mazatlán on Friday. What is clear is that no matter who Chivas starts, they are a side with significant quality and depth with several players capable of hurting Forge. But how they manage their side for this match, especially with such a big scoreline advantage, will be intriguing. Having this match at home will help, but don’t be surprised if a few Chivas league regulars are given the night off on Tuesday.

PROJECTED STARTING XIs

C.D. Guadalajara: Whalley; Sánchez, Briseño, Sepúlveda, Chávez Garcia; Torres, Beltrán, González; Cowell, Marín, Padilla

Forge FC: Kalongo; Samuel, Metusala, Achinioti-Jönsson, Owolabi-Belewu; Bekker, Hojabrpour, Jensen; Choinière, Campbell, Badibanga

CONCACAF CHAMPIONS CUP HISTORY

C.D. Guadalajara all-time record: 21-9-6
Best finish: Champions (1962, 2018)

Forge FC all-time record: 0-0-3
Best finish: Round of 16 (2022)

MATCH OFFICIALS

Referee: Mario Escobar (GUA)
ARs: Luis Ventura (GUA), Humberto Panjoj (GUA)
4th Official: Julio Luna (GUA)
VAR Official: Ricardo Montero (CRC)
Assistant VAR: Benjamin Pineda (CRC)

KEY QUOTES

“We expect a little bit of the same. They’re a quality club with quality players that has a style of play, and you can see that that’s distinct in what they do, and we want to be able to do the same. We were happy with our performance in the first match and not happy with the result. But we want to come out and play.” — Forge FC head coach Bobby Smyrniotis

“Just watching and being part of that first game, you realize it’s a quality team. The pace is very fast, and you can see they’re in shape, in midseason form. I think for us it’s just focusing on this game, knowing what we have to do, sticking to our game plan and just enjoying the moment as well.” — Forge FC attacker Tristan Borges