Toluca vs Pachuca is the matchup of the 2022 Liga MX Apertura Final. This is a double-fixture contest with the first game being played on Thursday, October 27, at Estadio Nemesio Díez a.k.a. La Bombonera in Toluca, Edomex.
The stadium sits at an altitude of almost 9,000 feet, which makes it one of the highest sports venues on the continent. Further, La Bombonera is also oriented differently from other Mexican stadiums – rather than having a North-to-South orientation like most other stadiums, it’s set East-to-West.
For these reasons, some visiting teams find it difficult to play on Toluca’s home turf. This is why it’s no surprise that Diablos Rojos went with just one home loss in the regular season of the 2022 Liga MX Apertura.
What’s interesting is that the loss in question happened to Pachuca. The visitors from eastern Mexico won the game 4-1.
Toluca vs Pachuca Liga MX Final Odds
Moneyline
| Toluca | +170 |
| Draw | +260 |
| Pachuca | +150 |
Goals Over/Under
| Over 2.5 | -133 |
| Under 2.5 | +104 |
*Odds taken from bet365 on Tuesday, October 25.
When, Where, and How to Watch?
- Place: Nemesio Diez Stadium, Toluca, Estado de Mexico
- Date: Thursday, October 27
- Time: 8:00 PM ET
- How to Watch: TUDN/Univisión
Toluca Coming to the Final After Knocking Out a Huge Favorite
Club America is the biggest soccer team in Mexico, which was the no.1 favorite to win the 2022 Liga MX Apertura. It looked as if Millonetas were going to do it, but then Toluca ruined their plans. In the first game of the Liga MX Semifinals, Toluca beat Club America 2-1 at home, despite being a +450 underdog.
The team from the Mexican capital had a chance to set things straight in the second leg, which took place at Estadio Azteca. Everyone thought the -400 favorite was going to win, but Toluca managed to hold Club America to a 1-1 draw, booking the ticket to the 2022 Liga MX Final.
Once again, Toluca is seen as the underdog. However, this time, the odds are pretty close. This goes especially for the first game of the final doubleheader, which is played on their turf.
Pachuca’s Time Has Finally Come
Pachuca is one of the oldest soccer clubs in the Americas, having been founded in 1903. This club has a very rich trophy cabinet, but it’s been a while since Los Tuzos won the Liga MX title the last time. It happened in 2016, although they did come very close to winning the Clausura 2022. They reached the final but lost to Atlas 3-2 on aggregate.
This time, they’re determined to get ahold of the title, and everything seems to be going in their favor. The thing is that they simply have a better roster than Toluca, especially in the offense. Their forward Nicolas Ibanez was the top-scorer of the regular season of the Apertura with 11 goals. Then, in the playoffs, we saw him score a hat-trick in Pachuca’s 5-2 win over Monterrey.
The win happened on their stadium – Estadio Hidalgo – which is where the second leg of the 2022 Liga MX Apertura will be played.
Toluca vs Pachuca Prediction
Pachuca might not go all-in in the first leg of the final. Instead, their plan for Thursday’s game is to make sure they don’t suffer a big defeat. If they don’t lose big on the road, they will have no problems winning the title on their turf three days later. That said, the most probable outcome of this game is a draw.
Picks: Draw and under 2.5 goals