MIAMI, Florida – There is a long, rich history when it comes to Chilean footballers at Monterrey, and in particular Chileans who have starred for Rayados in the Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League.
In particular, the legacy of Humberto Suazo lives on to this day, as the former FW formed part of the Monterrey side that won three straight SCCLs from 2011-13 in which Suazo scored an astounding 16 goals.
Now in 2021, there is another Chilean looking to leave his mark for Monterrey in a SCCL Final, DF Sebastian Vegas.
Vegas has been a key member of Rayados in the 2021 SCCL, starting five matches for the club in the tournament, including both legs of the quarterfinals and semifinals.
Knowing full well Suazo’s immense SCCL legacy at Monterrey, Vegas hopes to be able to follow in his countryman’s footsteps with a title-winning performance on Thursday.
“We have been working very hard for this moment, it has been a long season, so it is a privilege to be in this place, so we are enjoying it. We are very hopeful and very eager to make sure this cup stays at home,” said Vegas in an exclusive interview with Concacaf.com.
“It would be a dream come true to win it. When I came to this club, it was with the idea of fighting for titles and today here I am fighting for one. It has been a great experience to be able to help this team reach the Final.
“It is always important to be playing at these kinds of stages and levels and being an important member of the team to then leave a legacy. It’s really big so hopefully tomorrow everything goes well and we win the title,” said Vegas.
It certainly won’t be an easy task for Monterrey, who will face Liga MX leaders and seven-time Concacaf champions Club America in Thursday’s winner-take-all Final.
Vegas expects Club America to come with their full arsenal of weapons.
“I think America have a lot of really good players, players who are very important. I think on their forward line they have one of the best in Roger Martinez. I think he’s their strongest player, but all of their players are of a great level, so we are going to have to do everything possible to try to beat them tomorrow.”
When asked about his memories of watching his countryman Suazo in those previous SCCLs, Vegas recalls a skilled playmaker and goal-scorer.
“There is so much to say about him. He gave everyone so much joy, especially a lot of joy in these Concacaf games. He was always present. His play was marvelous, he gave fantastic assists, he was a tremendous goalscorer. There are so many memories of him. The fans adore him and I think the people will always remember him,” said Vegas.
Vegas also remembers with great clarity the fantastic goal scored by Suazo in the first leg of the 2011-12 Final against Santos Laguna, which ended 2-0 in favor of Rayados and served as part of their 3-2 aggregate win.
“I remember most the goal that he scored against Santos Laguna when he got the ball and made moves past a defender and then another defender and then beat the goalkeeper to score a great goal. That is one of the goals that the people remember most,” said Vegas.
