Pachuca 2-1 Club America: Player ratings as Erick Sanchez's brace sinks the Eagles

A brace from Erick 'Chiquito' Sanchez propelled Pachuca to a 2-1 triumph over Club America in Liga MX action at the Estadio Hidalgo Saturday night.

The hosts started off on the front-foot, putting America under pressure and creating a quality chance in the opning two minutes. The Concacaf giants were pinned back for the first 10 or so minutes and weren't able to generate any momentum going forward.

America's biggest chance of the half came when a Julain Quinones strike was deflected and was headed toward the back of the net before Carlos Moreno intervened to force a corner kick. Just moments later, Quinones won the ball back after giving it way and played Jonathan Rodriguez through on goal with sublime pass, but the former Cruz Azul player dragged his effort wide.

11 minutes into the second half, Pachuca found the opening goal of the game after an excellent low cross from Miguel Rodriguez that met Erick 'Chiquito' Sanchez, who made no mistake from right in front of the goal. The strike was initially ruled offside, but referee Víctor Alfonso Caceres Hernandez reveled that the goal was onside and that the hosts were indeed ahead 1-0.

However, 10 minutes in the 66th minute after Sanchez's strike, America substitute Brian Rodriguez came on and immediately changed the game by slicing through the hosts' defense to assist Quinones' equalizer. The visitors were crying out for someone to be more direct in attack, and that's exactly what Rodriguez did.

Another close-range effort from Sanchez saw Pachuca retake the lead, as Oussama Idrissi's final involvement in the game came after he weaved in-and-out of the America defense to set Chiquito up for his brace.

The Eagles pushed hard for an equalizer in the latter stages of the match. but Pachuca were able to hold on for three huge points to win their fifth game of the Clausura campaign -- while America suffered their first league defeat but their second overall in the calendar year.

Club America player ratings ( 4-3-3 )

GK: Luis Malagon - 7/10 - Came up with a huge save to deny Rondon from point-blank range.

RB: Kevin Alvarez - 6.5/10 - Decent going forward but could've done more on the defensive end.

CB: Israel Reyes - 6/10 - The player neither helped nor hindered his side.

CB: Igor Lichnovsky - 6/10 - Made a few key interventions but it wasn't enough to steer his side clear of defeat.

LB: Cristian Calderon - 6/10 - Sharp in defense but wasn't switched on when going forward to help with the attack.

CM: Alex Zendejas - 5/10 - Failed to generate much in the final third when he got involved.

CM: Jonathan dos Santos - 7/10 - Kept the midfield ticking was one America's better players on the night.

CM: Alvaro Fidalgo - 7/10 - Won the ball back plenty and helped his team transition up the pitch.

RW: Javairo Dilrosun - 5.5/10 - Failed to provide a spark on the wing and lost the ball on a few occasions.

ST: Julian Quinones - 8.5/10 - A decent outing for the center-forward and he really should've had a couple of assists if his teammates could've finished their dinner. Did well to finish off a chance from a difficult angle.

LW: Jonathan Rodriguez - 5.5/10 - Got into good positions but failed to put away a glorious chance early on.

Substitutes

LW: Brian Rodriguez - 8/10 - Provided an instant impact by shredding through the Pachuca defense and assisting Quinones to tie things up.

LB: Salvador Reyes - N/A

ST: Henry Martin - N/A - Still visibly injured.

ST: Illian Hernandez - N/A

Manager

Andre Jardine - 5/10 - His team selection wasn't bad, but it could've been better -- especially up front on the wings -- which was evident when Brian Rodriguez came on to instantly provide an assist. In his defense, his team probably should've put away at least one-to-two chances that would've changed the course of the match.

Player of the match - Erick Sanchez (Pachuca)