Cruz Azul, Santos Laguna reach Liga MX final amid controversy

Santos Laguna reaches another final after 538 days

On Sunday, May 28, 2023, Santos Laguna defeated Toluca by a score of 3-0 at the Estadio Nemesio Díez to reach the Liga MX final and will face Cruz Azul who had previously defeated Club América on Saturday night by a score of 2-1 at the Estadio Azteca. Santos Laguna had not reached the final since the Clausura 2021 tournament, when they were defeated by Cruz Azul at the Estadio Azteca. Santos Laguna is looking to win its seventh Liga MX title and will be playing in their eighth final under the leadership of coach Guillermo Almada. Guillermo Almada will be looking to win his second Liga MX title as a coach, after winning the Clausura 2022 tournament with Pachuca.

Cruz Azul seeks its first title since Clausura 2021

Cruz Azul, which is coached by Raúl Gutiérrez and is looking to win its ninth Liga MX title and its first since the Clausura 2021, will face Santos Laguna in the two-legged final. Cruz Azul is seeking to end a five-year championship drought. Cruz Azul has lost its last two finals to Santos Laguna, the most recent of which was in the Clausura 2021 tournament. "We have to go out there and get the victory," said Cruz Azul coach Raúl Gutiérrez after the victory over Club América. "We have to go out there and show that we're the best team in Mexico."

Repechage will not be played next tournament

The Liga MX Repechage will not be played in the next tournament, which will begin in the summer of 2023, as announced by the president of the Liga MX, Mikel Arriola. The Repechage, which was introduced in the 2020 Apertura tournament, allows the fifth to 12th place teams in the regular-season standings to compete for a spot in the playoffs. The decision to cancel the Repechage was made after a vote by the owners of the 18 Liga MX clubs.