Monarcas host Correcaminos UAT at Estadio Morelos on Thursday, 21 August 2026, in the 5th round of the Liga de Expansión MX Apertura. The visitors took the points with a 3-1 victory that shifted the balance in the lower half of the table. By then, the hosts had already looked sluggish, and the visitors made them pay.
The opening exchanges were fractious, with D. Aguilar booking for Monarcas in the 5th minute. Two yellows followed at the 15th minute, one for Y. Uribe and another for D. De Buen, before D. Zamora added his own caution in the 22nd. An unnamed player from the hosts received a yellow card soon after, and D. Torres collected two cautions in consecutive minutes. T. Sandoval gave the home side the lead in the 33rd minute, capitalising on a moment of confusion.
And here's the thing about Monarcas; they created space but struggled to finish. Correcaminos responded immediately, and the visitors took control after half-time. B. Mendoza restored parity in the 66th, and the momentum swung decisively away from the hosts.
To be fair, the Monarcas defence looked tired, and the visitors exploited it effectively. O. Islas put Correcaminos ahead in the 74th minute, moving the team into a position where they could dictate the tempo. The hosts tried to respond, but a late strike from A. Flores in the 90+4th minute sealed the result. One mistake ends it, and Monarcas had made several.
The statistics tell a different story to the scoreline. Monarcas held 54% of possession but failed to penetrate the final third effectively, managing only 88 passes into the opposition half. They registered 7 shots on target, yet they managed only 1 goal. Correcaminos were more efficient, converting 3 of their 8 attempts on goal into results.
The result leaves Monarcas in 2nd place with 12 points, while Correcaminos move up to 4th with 11. Both sides have played 6 games, and the gap between them remains narrow. The hosts extend their unbeaten run to 8 matches across all competitions, but this defeat raises questions about their consistency.