Alianza — Fuerte San Francisco: 2:2, Primera Division

Alianza and Fuerte San Francisco played out a 2:2 draw in the ninth round of the Apertura on Wednesday night, a result that leaves the hosts seven points clear of the visitors in the table. The match finished with both sides having seen enough chances to win, though neither could find the decisive moment. Alianza took the lead through J. Barreto in the forty-fourth minute before Fuerte San Francisco struck back after the break. Barreto's goal came just before half-time, and it seemed to settle Alianza into a rhythm they had been missing in recent weeks. To be fair, the home side controlled much of the tempo for the first forty-five minutes, moving the ball with a purpose that Fuerte San Francisco could not quite match. The visitors had their moments but struggled to string together anything resembling a sustained attack. The second half brought a different story entirely. Alianza doubled their advantage in the sixtieth minute, and for a while it looked as though the gap would widen further. By then, however, Fuerte San Francisco had switched their approach, pressing higher and looking for openings in the home side's defence. The equaliser came in the sixty-ninth minute, and the atmosphere shifted almost instantly. And here's the thing about this match — the momentum had turned completely. Fuerte San Francisco found an equaliser in the eightieth minute, a goal that came after a period of sustained pressure from the visitors. The home side had camped in the final third for much of the opening half, but they could not hold on when the game opened up. Alianza dominated possession with 58 per cent of the ball and registered 152 attacks compared to 95 from the visitors. They took ten shots, six of which were on target, while Fuerte San Francisco managed four shots on target from six attempts. The statistics tell one story, but the result tells another — many chances went begging for both sides. The draw keeps Alianza in seventh place with twelve points from eight games, while Fuerte San Francisco remain twelfth on six points from ten matches. The home side have been inconsistent of late, drawing with Águila and losing to Motagua, but this result shows they can still compete when the game opens up. Fuerte San Francisco's form has been poor, with only one win in ten matches, yet they demonstrated resilience to earn a point away from home. What matters most is that neither side gained ground on the teams above them, and both will be looking for improvement in the next round. The match finished with four yellow cards for Alianza and three for Fuerte San Francisco, a sign of the physical nature of the contest.