CF Pachuca vs Deportivo Toluca Prediction, Odds, Picks

CF Pachuca vs Deportivo Toluca Predictions

In the last five Liga MX games, CF Pachuca started off with a resounding win over FC Juarez, which was followed by two narrow wins over Club Necaxa and Club Leon. They were held to a 1-1 draw by CD Guadalajara before nabbing another narrow win over Mazatlan FC on Thursday.

Deportivo Toluca, on the other hand, beat CD Guadalajara 2-1 before playing two back-to-back goalless draws against Club Leon and Atlas FC. After that, they went down against league leaders CF Monterrey before ending a three-game winless spell against Cruz Azul last week.

CF Pachuca enjoyed playing against Deportivo Toluca last season winning all three games against them. However, looking at the recent form, Deportivo Toluca could be capable of holding CF Pachuca to a draw in their own backyard.

In 26 Liga MX encounters between these two sides, CF Pachuca emerged victorious on eleven occasions. Deportivo Toluca won nine times, while six games ended in draws. In the last five encounters between these two sides, including the three last season, CF Pachuca won four times, while Deportivo Toluca’s last win in this fixture came in Apertura 2021.

In the last five Liga MX encounters, CF Pachuca scored 16 goals, while Deportivo Toluca only mustered five. The two sides have met 12 times at the Estadio Hidalgo. Five of these encounters have ended in draws. CF Pachuca won four times, while Deportivo Toluca emerged victorious on three occasions.

CF Pachuca Strong Despite Noteworthy Departures

After a narrow 3-2 win against Mazatlan FC in the last round, CF Pachuca hopped up into second place on the Clausura league table. They are now a point clear of Tigres UANL and two behind table-toppers CF Monterrey.

This Clausura season holds more importance than usual for CF Pachuca because they will surely attempt the double after lifting the Apertura 2022 trophy a few months ago. At the start of the season, it looked like an unlikely task for the side because of the transfer activity.

Nicolas Ibanez and Victor Guzman left the club before the start of the season and it was touted as a major blow for CF Pachuca. The club also chose to extend Lucas Di Yorio’s loan deal at Club Leon instead of calling the striker back after an impressive season last year.

Relying on their existing squad, CF Pachuca have maintained their top form and will surely be one of the strongest title contenders this season. Their skills will be put to a major test once again when they face Deportivo Toluca next.

Scoring Goals Is Not A Concern For CF Pachuca 

CF Pachuca have kept just one clean sheet so far, but as long as they are outscoring their opponents, it won’t be a problem for the side. They are the league’s joint-highest goal-scorers as things stand.

Both CF Pachuca and Club America have scored 17 goals in 7 games, scoring at the league’s best average of 2.4 goals per match. Roberto de la Rosa put his name on the charts this season after a brace in the last game.

Kevin Alvarez and Javier Lopez have scored seven goals between them with the former nabbing four. Jesus Hernandez and Aviles Hurtado have looked menacing down the flanks, while the central creativity is coming from Luis Chavez.

No Sign Of New Signings 

The departures during the transfer window were notable, but CF Pachuca also brought a few new players in to increase the depth of their existing squad. Striker Cristian Arango was pulled in from Los Angeles FC and defender Enzo Martinez was signed from Queretaro FC.

Arango lifted the MLS title with LAFC last season and completed his move to CF Pachuca in the first week of February. However, the striker is yet to make an appearance for his new club. Martinez joined in January and still has not been included in the squad.

Pau de la Fuente was also roped in earlier in January from Malaga. The winger started the game against Club Puebla but was substituted five minutes before half-time due to a sprained knee. De la Fuente is expected to be back in a few days.

Two Consecutive Challenges For Deportivo Toluca

Considering the fact that they were finalists in the Apertura 2022 season, Deportivo Toluca have not made a very promising start this season. Despite losing only once in six games so far, the three draws have cost them a lot of points as they sit in eighth place.

So far, Deportivo Toluca have faced two title contenders in Club America and CF Monterrey this season. They held their arch-rivals Club America to a draw but narrowly fell to a defeat against CF Monterrey over ten days ago.

Now they will face two tough sides in CF Pachuca and Santos Laguna in their next two Liga MX games and both will be away from home. Deportivo Toluca will be aiming to pick up a minimum of four points from these two fixtures.

Deportivo Toluca Are Not Scoring A Lot Of Goals 

While their next opponents are scoring over two goals per match, Deportivo Toluca are struggling to score one. Their goals-per-match ratio of 1.3 is only the 11th-best record in Liga MX right now.

Deportivo Toluca have only scored six goals in their last five matches. In the six games they have played so far, they have scored eight and conceded six. Deportivo Toluca have managed to score more than one goal per match on only two occasions so far this season.

The goals and assists are coming from the flanks for Deportivo Toluca with Maximiliano Araujo scoring three goals and picking up two assists in six games from the left flank. On the other side, Jean Meneses has pocketed two assists so far.

Up front, sole striker Camilo has only scored one goal in six appearances for the club this season, which is not good enough for a striker. Leonardo Fernandez has been operating as a number ten behind Camilo and even he has not gotten off the mark yet.