At the worst possible moment, Toluca played its worst match so far in the Copa Libertadores 2016 and lost the first leg of the second round 4-0 against Sao Paulo.
At Cicero Pompeu de Toledo Stadium, also known as Morumbi, it was an almost lethal hell for los Diablos Rojos, who played a great game, but now are very close to being eliminated. Next Wednesday, the rematch will be at Estadio Nemesio Diez and Toluca will need a miraculous, perfect performance.
The Sao Paulo took the win thanks to goals from Michel Bastos (27 minutes), Argentine Ricardo Centurión (45′ and 65′) and Tiago Mendes (53′).
The Mexican squad was timid from the start of the game against a Sao Paulo, who devoured the opponent from the kickoff, starting to worry spectators and goalkeeper Alfredo Talavera.
Not even a half hour passed before Sao Paulo was already up 1-0 with Bastos’ goal who finished within the unmarked area on a bad night for the scarlet team, but especially the rear, dribbling the ball from the left-hand corner.
Toluca manager Jose Cardozo was desperate, perhaps affecting his team, which began to foul its rival. To make matters worse for Toluca, Ernesto Vega was sent the bench after sending a hard kick to Rodrigo Caio.
The referee was the Uruguayan Jonathan Fuentes, who did acceptable work, and reprimanded visitors Aaron Galindo and Erbin Trejo, plus expelled Ernesto Vega after 88 minutes.
