Cruz Azul – Puebla Prediction & Preview and Betting Tips (17.02.2018)

Cruz Azul and Puebla meet at Estadio Azul, in a game for the 8th round of the First Division. The record of direct matches played in this stadium indicates total balance between these two teams, since there was 1 draw and 2 wins for each team in the last 5 matches. But the last time these two teams met in this stadium was on 17-01-2018, for the Copa MX, which ended with Puebla’s victory by (1-3). J. Silva (48 ‘) scored the goals of the match, for Cruz Azul, and F. Torres (18’ e 20 ‘) and A. Chumacero (34’), for Puebla. Particular attention is required for the home / away condition, since both teams present significantly different results at home and abroad.

Cruz Azul:

The home team is currently in the 15 th position of the league, with 7 points won, after 8 wins, 12 draws and 6 losses. In the penultimate match, they lost in a home match against Necaxa, by (0-2). In the last match, they tied it away against Monterrey by (2-2). This is a team that, oddly enough, has had better results in away matches than at home, since in the last 30 matches they register 7 wins, 3 draws and 5 losses in away matches; against 5 wins, 6 draws and 4 losses at their stadium. In the last 10 home league matches Cruz Azul has a record of 3 wins, 4 draws and 3 losses, so they have won 13 points out of 30 possible. In their home league matches the most frequent result at half-time was the 0-0 (6 out of 12 matches). In their home matches for this competition there is a tendency for few goals, since 5 of the last 12 matches they played ended in Under 1,5 goals. In 26 matches played in this competition, he got the comeback in 4 of the 11 games in which he suffered the first goal.

The Blue Cross has been performing well below expectations in the Clausura of the Mexican Championship, does not win 5 games ago and needs to seek a recovery to try to enter the fight for a place to access the next phase of the national championship. The local team presents problems, both in the offensive and in the defensive system, since they scored only 7 goals, being the fourth worst attack of the Clausura, and suffered 8, having the eighth worst defense, problems that need to be corrected to try to leave the last positions. The Blue Cross comes from 3 draws and 1 defeat, being that it did not score goals in any of these 4 parties, evidencing its difficulties, even acting before its fans. For the game against Puebla, coach Pedro Caixinha has no problems in the main team and goes to the field with maximum strength.

Puebla:

After 7 wins, 7 draws and 10 losses, the away team is currently in the 5 th position, with 12 points won. In the last match, they won in a home match against Toluca, by (2-0), after in the previous match they lost in an away match against León, by (2-1). This is a team that usually makes good use of the home advantage, stronger with the help of its supporters, since in the last 30 matches they register 3 wins, 3 draws and 9 losses in away matches; against 6 victories, 5 draws and 4 defeats in his stadium. For the championship, Puebla won 6 points out of 30 possible, after 1 win, 3 draws and 6 losses in the last 10 home matches.

For this competition, they have not won any of the last 8 away matches. In their away league matches the most frequent result at half-time was the 1-0 (4 out of 13 matches). Their attack has scored regularly, since they have scored goals in 7 of the last 10 matches for this competition. In their home matches there is a tendency for few goals, since 8 of the last 11 matches for this competition have ended with Under 2,5 goals. In 24 matches in this competition, he never got the comeback in the 10 games in which he suffered the first goal.

The Puebla is making a reasonable closing, has alternated between good and bad results, but comes from a good victory, looking now for another 3 points to try to reach the top positions of the national championship. The team has a solid defense, which suffered only 5 goals and is the fifth best, while the attack scored 9 goals and is the sixth most effective, although there is scope for improvement, mainly in the attack, to balance the networks more frequently . Playing as a visitor, as in the game on Saturday, the Puebla, in addition to not winning 8 games, scored only 4 goals in these games, evidencing the difficulty of balancing the networks away from their domains, and it must be stressed that 6 of these matches ended with a maximum of 2 goals on the scoreboard. For the clash against Cruz Azul, coaches Garcia and Meza have no problems in the team considered titular and must maintain the starting lineup of the last day, in which the team won to Toluca by 2×0.