Jorge Torres Nilo insists Pachuca stand as clear favorites to win the 2022 Liga MX Apertura

Toluca is set to host Pachuca on Thursday at Estadio Nemesio Díez for the first leg of the 2022 Liga MX Apertura final, defeating Santos Laguna and Club America to reach the championship series. 

The team concluded the campaign in sixth on the table with 27 points in 17 games and a record of 7W-4L-6D. Though Nacho Ambriz’s side entered the playoffs as underdogs, they have since proven themselves among the best of the 2022 Apertura. 

But despite recent victories and momentum, Toluca defender Jorge Torres Nilo insists Pachuca remain the clear favorites to win the title. 

"It is not that I don’t want to take responsibility and throw it at Pachuca, but the favorite has been Pachuca because it is the team that plays the best and the team that has been most constant in the tournament that in theory has that revenge," he said at a press conference. "We arrived with the inertia of the group and we appealed to the faith that we have as a group."

Nilo has played an integral part in the team’s success this season, scoring the heroic goal against Club America in the second leg of the semifinal series that inspired Toluca to their thirteenth Liga MX final. 

Though the player left the pitch in the 40th minute due to an injury, he hailed his team for adapting to the match accordingly to reach the final. 

"When the goal happened, I knew it was his grace and his favor [from God]. I enjoyed it that way, that grace from God that has always accompanied me. And then it was the injury, that in the end I have to leave. In the end, I know that God allowed everything, even the injury itself to come out. The team accommodated even better and I am totally grateful," he declared.

The team will play the first leg on Thursday, before traveling to Pachuca for the final game on Sunday.