Pachuca and Morelia meet Thursday night to open the first of six InterLiga 2009 matches to be played at The Home Depot Center.
But after each team completed matches in Houston and Frisco, the clubs come in to the final leg of group play with different perspectives.
Pachuca have already clinched a slot in one of two finals Sunday and are looking to claim the top slot and finish undefeated in the group. That's why the Tuzos didn't mind having the last part of their training session suspended Tuesday night.
The Home Depot Center's Track and Field stadium lights went out on Coach Enrique Meza's team toward the end of practice. But Pachuca comes into their match against the Monarcas with plenty of confidence.
After all, the Tuzos are coming off a 1-0 win against Toluca, the Apertura champion, on Monday in both teams' second match of the eight-team tournament. Pachuca routed UAG Tecos 4-0 on Jan. 2 in Dallas in the second match of Group A play.
The Tuzos are not only seeking nine points in the standings and move closer to earning a slot in Copa Libertadores, but want to continue to use Interliga as a means to help mesh some of their newcomers with younger players. Most of those are backups as the team rests its stars, prepping them for the upcoming Clausura tournament.
Paraguayan forward Edgar Benitez is tied with Chivas de Guadalajara's Carlos Ochoa as the tournament's top scorers (two goals). Benitez' first score came against Tecos, which marked his first official game with Pachuca. He raked in his second goal against Toluca.
Victor Maсуn, Edy Brambila and Marco Perez have also found the back of the net, while goalkeeper Rodolfo Cota and the Pachuca defense is yet to allow a goal.
That has helped the Tuzos, the two-time defending CONCACAF Champions League titleholders who finished 5-6-6 with 25 points and were third in Group One during the 2008 Apertura, to a plus-five goal differential in the standings.
The Tuzos' last trip to InterLiga was in 2006 when they finished with a 1-1-1 record with their only win coming against Morelia. That was a 2-1 victory in Frisco led by goals from Luis Angel Landin and Richard Nunes.
While Pachuca looks to rest as many players possible, Morelia could come out strong. They might not have another choice.
Morelia needs a win against the Tuzos to end group play with four points. They also need a favorable outcome from the second match of Thursday's doubleheader.
A Toluca (1 point) win over Tecos (3 points) to earn an outright slot in the finals.
Coach Luis Fernando Tena's team sits at the bottom of the group table with one point, having scored only one goal. Morelia has given up one goal in the tournament but has struggled to produce a fluid brand of soccer.
Morelia hopes that changes against Pachuca. In three InterLiga appearances, the Monarcas have reached the finals once, a 3-1 loss to America.
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