MIAMI, Florida – The recent dominance of Mexican clubs in the Scotiabank Concacaf Champions League has been well-chronicled, as a team from Liga MX has not only won every edition of the SCCL, but it is a run that extends back to the Concacaf Champions Cup.
To find the last time that a non-Mexican club was champion of the region, one must trace back to 2005 when Costa Rican giants Deportivo Saprissa lifted the trophy as Concacaf Champions Cup winners.
Their opponent in that Final was Mexican side Pumas, and it just so happens that after the results of Wednesday’s 2022 SCCL Draw, Saprissa and Pumas will meet again in Concacaf play in next February’s SCCL Round of 16.
Saprissa reached that 2005 Final in dramatic circumstances, eliminating Monterrey 5-3 in a penalty shootout after a 3-3 aggregate draw in their semifinal series. Meanwhile, Pumas handled DC United with aplomb with a 6-1 aggregate win.
The first leg of the Final was played at the Estadio Saprissa in San Jose and the Costa Rican hosts would deliver a top performance in a 2-0 win in front of a boisterous home crowd.
A young Christian Bolanos gave his side a 1-0 lead in the 21’ by poking home a left-footed shot before Gabriel Badilla doubled the advantage shortly before halftime in the 43’ with a strong header off a corner kick.
The second leg back in Mexico City was as intense an atmosphere as one will find in Concacaf, but Saprissa kept their nerve and scored a big away goal in the 33’ through Ronald Gomez.
Pumas launched numbers forward in hopes of a comeback and drew to within 3-2 on aggregate on scores from Joaquin del Olmo in the 66’ and Leandro Augusto in the 88’, but in the end Saprissa would hang on for the 3-2 aggregate triumph.
Since then, Pumas have not played against Saprissa, but they have had great success against Central American opposition, with a record of 9W-3D-4L and 41 goals scored and just 12 conceded in SCCL competition.
Meanwhile, Liga MX has proven a stern test for Saprissa, with the Ticos owning a 3W-3D-10L mark against Mexican sides in the SCCL.
No doubt that Saprissa will be eager to improve upon that recent record against Mexican opposition and draw inspiration from that 2005 Final.
