It’s time to review.
The regular phase of the Clausura 2023 is concluded after 17 exhilarating match weeks. Teams are already preparing for the playoffs, but while we wait, we thought it would be fun to reflect on a truly memorable tournament.
Don’t expect goals or cutting-edge tactical theories from our fields, just so you know. We’re here to highlight the oddball incidents that help Liga MX remain the beloved competition.
1. Nahuel Guzman squabbles with the Toluca mascot
https://twitter.com/i/status/1642904251939672065
A Nahuelada is defined as a mistake or a contentious conduct by Tigres goalkeeper Nahuel Guzmán in the Liga MX lexicon. The Argentine, who has a history of stirring up controversy in the league, added a new chapter to his biography this year when he got into a heated argument with Toluca’s mascot Diablito.
2. Xolos and the worst corner ever
https://twitter.com/i/status/1649636377095544834
The Tijuana team is terrible. Since the introduction of the repechaje, which gives teams who finish as low as 12th place (in a league of 18) a chance to win the championship, they are the only Liga MX club to have missed the playoffs.
They are so awful, in fact, that they created the worst corner in soccer history.
3. The wail of Esteban Andrada
https://twitter.com/i/status/1644912361503850498
Goals were not included in our review, but this one got past our rigorous restrictions since the error that allowed América to score this goal was just too significant to ignore.
What did Andrada have in mind? That is without a doubt for the year.
4. Santos Laguna’s corner kick defense against the Pumas
https://twitter.com/i/status/1615089004491444224
Rafa Puente’s Pumas experiment gave fans PTSD, but it also provided some entertaining moments for outsiders. A picture of a corner kick where José González (5’6″) and Edgar Alaffita (5’2″) were defending Santos Laguna defenders Felix Torres (6’2″) and Hugo Rodriguez (6′) serves as a superb illustration of this.
5. Henry Martin celebrating his dog peeing against Chivas
Clausura 2023 top scorer Henry Martín got a couple of controversial celebrations during the tournament. The most iconic? When he embodied a dog peeing over Chivas‘ goal in the last Clásico Nacional. The celebration, he said, was a tribute to old Cuauhtémoc Blanco, who performed it a few springs ago against Atlante.
6. Nico Larcamón doing his best Janet Jackson impression
América vs. León was probably the spiciest game of the tournament. And in the heat of the moment, coaches Fernando Ortiz and Nico Larcamón engaged in some physical melee. Ortiz accused Larcamón of insulting his dead mother and ripped Larcamón’s shirt, exposing one of his nipples.
7. A referee knees a player’s balls
https://twitter.com/i/status/1642356456514101249
Yes! You read what you read. In the same América vs. León game, the referee Fernando Hernández, tired of players’ complaints, hit Argentine Lucas Romero in between his legs with his left knee.
Cameras caught the scene and Hernández is “enjoying” a 15-game ban.
