Apertura 2018 Copa MX final

The Apertura 2018 Copa MX Final was the final of the Apertura 2018 Copa MX, the thirteenth edition of the Copa MX under its current format and 80th overall organized by the Mexican Football Federation, the governing body of association football in Mexico.

Apertura 2018 Copa MX Final

Event	Apertura 2018 Copa MX
Monterrey Cruz Azul 0 2
Date	31 October 2018 (2018-10-31)[1]
Venue	Estadio BBVA Bancomer, Guadalupe, Nuevo León
Referee	Fernando Guerrero
Attendance	49,764
Weather	Mostly Cloudy 72 °F (22 °C) 88% humidity[2]
← Clausura 2018 Clausura 2019 →

The final was contested in a single leg format between Liga MX clubs Monterrey and Cruz Azul.^[1] The match was hosted by Monterrey at Estadio BBVA Bancomer in the Monterrey suburb of Guadalupe on 31 October 2018. The winners earned a spot to face the winners of the Clausura 2019 in the 2019 Supercopa MX.

Qualified teams

Team	Previous finals appearances (bold indicates winners)[3]
Monterrey	4 (1964, 1969, 1992, Apertura 2017)
Cruz Azul	5 (1969, 1974, 1988, 1997, Clausura 2013)

Venue

Estadio BBVA Bancomer hosted the final

Due to the tournament's regulations, the higher seed among both finalists during the group stage will host the final, thus Estadio BBVA Bancomer hosted the final.^[4] The venue which opened on 2 August 2015 is the newest venue in Liga MX and has been home to Monterrey since the Apertura 2015 season.^[5] The venue has previously hosted two Liga MX finals (Clausura 2016 and Apertura 2017) and one Copa MX final (Apertura 2017).^[6][7][8]

Background

Monterrey has won the tournament twice while Cruz Azul has won it three times.^[3] Before reaching this final, the last time Monterrey reached a reached a final of any kind was the previous December when they defeated Pachuca 1–0 to capture the Apertura 2017 Copa MX.^[8] Cruz Azul last reached a final back in 2014 where they defeated Toluca 1–1 (on away goals) in the 2013–14 CONCACAF Champions League final.^[9]

These two clubs last faced each other in a final back in 2009 when Monterrey won 6–4 on aggregate to capture the Apertura 2009 league title.^[10] The clubs also faced each other in the 1969 Copa México Final where Cruz Azul came out victorious.^[3]

Monterrey won three, drew once, lost none and scored nine goals during group stage, as they were seeded third. They eliminated Zacatepec in the Round of 16, Querétaro in the quarterfinals, and Pachuca in the semifinals.

Cruz Azul won two, drew one, lost one and scored seven goals during group stage, as they were seeded ninth. They defeated Tijuana in the Round of 16, Juárez in the quarterfinals, and León on penalty kicks in the semifinals.

Road to the finals

Note: In all results below, the score of the finalist is given first.

Monterrey				Round	Cruz Azul
Opponent	Result			Group stage	Opponent	Result
Puebla	2–1 (H)			Matchday 1	Zacatepec	3–2 (A)
Venados	3–0 (A)			Matchday 2	Atlas	2–2 (H)
Puebla	1–1 (A)			Matchday 3	Zacatepec	2–0 (H)
Venados	3–2 (H)			Matchday 4	Atlas	0–1 (A)
Group 1 winners Pos Team Pld Pts 1 Monterrey 4 10 2 Puebla 4 7 3 Venados 4 0 Source: Copa MX				Final standings	Group 6 winners Pos Team Pld Pts 1 Cruz Azul 4 7 2 Zacatepec 4 6 3 Atlas 4 4 Source: Copa MX
Opponent	Result			Knockout stage	Opponent			Result
Zacatepec	4–2 (H)			Round of 16	Tijuana	2–1 (A)
Querétaro	1–0 (H)			Quarterfinals	Juárez	2–0 (H)
Pachuca	3–3 (4–3 pen.) (H)			Semifinals	León	1–1 (5–4 pen.) (H)

Match

Monterrey	0–2	Cruz Azul
	Report	Hernández 34' Cauteruccio 53'

31 October 2018

20:36

Estadio BBVA Bancomer, Guadalupe

Attendance: 49,764

Referee: Fernando Guerrero

Monterrey[11][12]

Cruz Azul[11][12]

GK 22 Juan Pablo Carrizo DF 17 Jesús Gallardo DF 23 Johan Vásquez  56'  56' DF 15 José María Basanta (c)  65' DF 21 Jesús Molina DF 288 Eric Cantú MF 16 Celso Ortiz  48' MF 29 Carlos Rodríguez FW 286 Daniel Lajud  57' FW 7 Rogelio Funes Mori FW 8 Dorlan Pabón Substitutions: GK 1 Marcelo Barovero DF 6 Edson Gutiérrez DF 11 Leonel Vangioni MF 284 Axel Grijalva  65' FW 18 Avilés Hurtado  56' FW 19 Luis Madrigal FW 20 Rodolfo Pizarro  57' Manager: Diego Alonso

GK 12 Guillermo Allison DF 16 Adrián Aldrete DF 2 Pablo Aguilar DF 5 Igor Lichnovsky  19' DF 4 Julio César Domínguez (c) MF 23 Iván Marcone MF 8 Javier Salas MF 14 Misael Domínguez  79' MF 25 Roberto Alvarado MF 11 Elías Hernández  66' FW 9 Milton Caraglio  46' Substitutions: GK 1 José de Jesús Corona DF 19 Antonio Sánchez  79' DF 27 José Madueña DF 342 Jorge Luis García MF 17 Édgar Méndez  66' MF 22 Rafael Baca FW 7 Martín Cauteruccio  46' Manager: Hélder Baptista[note 1]

Assistant referees: Marcos Quintero Israel Valenciano Fourth official: Alejandro Funk

Broadcasters

Country	Free	Pay	Ref
Mexico	Azteca 7 Canal 5	ESPN 2 Fox Sports 2 Izzi TDN UnivisionTDN	[14][15]
United States		Fox Deportes

Notes

1. Cruz Azul manager Pedro Caixinha was suspended three matches after an altercation with the officials during the Round of 16 match against Tijuana.^[13]