Monagas claimed a 3-1 victory over Academia de Anzoátegui in the Clausura round seven fixture at the home ground on Wednesday evening. The result keeps both sides in the lower reaches of the First Division table, though the visitors moved into a slightly more comfortable position.
Match events
Andrés Romero opened the scoring for Monagas in the seventeenth minute, a moment that shifted the momentum early on. Carlos Barrios responded for the hosts with an equaliser just nine minutes later, but the visitors took control after the break. Luis González restored the away side's lead in the eighty-fifth minute, and Edgar Carrion added a consolation for Academia de Anzoátegui in stoppage time.
And here's the thing about this result — the goals came at crucial moments, and Monagas made sure to hold their nerve when it mattered. The visitors worked a short corner in the opening exchanges that led to Romero's opener, a pattern that suggested they had studied the opposition well.
Several substitutions were made throughout the second half as both managers sought to change the game. Antony Velasco came on for the hosts in the forty-second minute, while Gabriel Fuentes followed shortly after half-time. Monagas brought on Antonio Romero in the fifty-fifth minute, and Carlos Barrios was replaced by C. Cermeño at the hour mark.
The statistics tell a story of possession without penetration from the home side. Academia de Anzoátegui held 44 per cent of the ball but managed only three shots on target from seven attempts inside the penalty area. Monagas, by contrast, created three big chances and fired five shots on target, showing a more direct approach that paid dividends.
Both sides exchanged yellow cards throughout the match, with the home side receiving three and the visitors also being booked three times. Jean Colorado went off early for Monagas in the nineteenth minute, while Pablo Bonilla and Andry Vera collected cards for the hosts in the thirty-third and thirty-seventh minutes respectively.
For Academia de Anzoátegui, the defeat leaves them thirteenth on 13 points from 19 games, with just three victories to their name. Monagas sit twelfth on 15 points, a narrow gap that suggests the standings could shift again as the season progresses.
