Leagues Cup Lays Bare Liga MX Rosters: Some Emerge Stronger, Others Limp Away Bruised

Three matches in a matter of days, right at the start of the Apertura 2026, were enough to expose the real depth of every roster. The Leagues Cup once again interrupted the Liga MX calendar to pit Mexican clubs against MLS sides, and the first phase left behind a decidedly uneven picture: some teams emerged stronger, while others will return to the local tournament carrying injuries, doubts and even one fewer coach.

What's the overall verdict? It depends on who you ask. For some clubs, the break was a chance to get minutes into new signings and iron out details. For others, it meant losing the momentum they had built in the opening weeks of the Apertura.

The ones left behind

Necaxa had opened the Mexican tournament in fine form, with six points out of a possible nine, but that momentum never showed up in the Leagues Cup. The club dropped its first two matches and was eliminated despite closing things out with a win over NYCFC.

The harshest blow, though, landed on Pumas. The team sits fourth in Liga MX, but it was eliminated in the binational tournament and paid a steep price in injuries. Sebastian Cordova tore the ACL in his left knee and will miss the rest of the Apertura 2026, with his return estimated at seven to eight months away. On top of that, Alvaro Angulo suffered a sprain in the match against Columbus Crew, expected to keep him out for three weeks.

Tigres arrived already bruised even before kickoff, following the resignation of coach Guido Pizarro, an absence that was felt in the locker room even though the team finished with three draws. But the real damage was to its image: the ejections of Diego Lainez and Nahuel Guzman, who shoved Salvadoran referee Ivan Barton, left a stain that will be hard to wash off.

Tijuana, which had opened the Apertura chasing the leaders with two wins and a draw, hit a wall by losing its first two matches to Austin FC and San Diego FC. At Chivas, the overall result (one win, one draw and one loss) took a back seat to the rough patch Armando "La Hormiga" Gonzalez is going through. He came away scoreless and now sits at three months without a goal, with visible frustration every time he checks in from the bench. And Cruz Azul, coming off its first Liga MX setback against Joel Huiqui, picked up two wins in the Leagues Cup but bowed out with a last minute loss to the Chicago Fire.

The ones who came out ahead

America is, right now, the happy face of the binational tournament. The club leads Liga MX and also advanced to the next round of the Leagues Cup with two wins and a draw. Guillermo Almada's work stands out even more considering the lack of reinforcements and the sluggish form of some of his national team regulars.

Leon showed two completely different faces: just one win in three Liga MX matchdays, but a perfect run in the Leagues Cup with three straight victories, built on the strong attacking chemistry between Juan Pablo Dominguez, Diber Cambindo and Daniel Arcila.

Monterrey, fifth after three matchdays of the Mexican tournament, snuck into the quarterfinals at the last minute and finished fourth in the Leagues Cup. Beyond the result, the tournament gave Matias Almeyda the chance to get minutes and adaptation time for his two big signings, Diego Rossi and Hugo Cuypers.

And at Toluca, third in Liga MX while still dealing with the absence of Marcel Ruiz, the best news has a name of its own: Federico Vinas already has two goals in the tournament, and his arrival is starting to pay off just as the team clinched a spot in the next round of the Leagues Cup.