Cruz Azul will begin the Liguilla, the Liga MX playoffs, the first week of May, but it will do so without Nicolás Larcamón.
The club fired the Argentine coach on April 22 after a 1-1 draw against Querétaro the night before extended La Maquina’s winless streak to nine straight games in all competitions.
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“Although we recognize that this could be a controversial decision at the moment of the season, after a good period of in-depth and objective analysis (far from the versions given in some media) we are convinced that this is the opportunity to intervene for the Liguilla and try to change the trend and in this way take care of the sporting project,” reads a fragment of the club’s statement.
It’s a marked change from what Larcamon was able to accomplish earlier in the year. Before the nine-game losing streak began, Cruz Azul was undefeated in 15 games dating back to mid-January.
Why did Cruz Azul fire Nicolás Larcamón?
But despite these positive results, Larcamon never became loved by Cruz Azul fans. He also clashed with the owners over the unenviable situation of having to play in Puebla, usually a two-hour drive from the club’s headquarters in Mexico City, while renovations were completed at Estadio Azteca ahead of the World Cup.
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A draw with Pumas on March 14 seemed to derail La Maquina. The lowest point was probably a 3-0 loss to LAFC in the first leg of a Concacaf Champions Cup series. Cruz Azul, current champion of the continental competition, could not find a comeback in the second leg, drawing 1-1 and being eliminated from the competition after a 4-1 aggregate defeat. Larcamon also struggled in international play at the FIFA Intercontinental Cup, where Cruz Azul lost 2-1 to Flamengo and became the first Concacaf team to fall in the Derby of the Americas.
Larcamon leaves with a balance of 24 wins, 7 losses and 16 draws.
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Spain – 17th appearance
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Spain – 17th appearance
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Brazil – 23rd appearance
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United States of America – 12th appearance
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Mexico – 18th appearance
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England – 17th appearance
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Portugal – ninth appearance
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France – 17th appearance
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Iran – seventh appearance
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Swiss – 13th appearance
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Croatia – seventh appearance
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Australia – seventh appearance
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Morocco – seventh appearance
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Austria – eighth appearance
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Ecuador – fifth appearance
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Senegal – fourth appearance
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South Korea – 12th appearance
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Japan – eighth appearance
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Colombia – seventh appearance
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Netherlands – 12th appearance
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Germany – 21st appearance
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Belgium – 15th appearance
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Canada – third appearance
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Saudi Arabia – seventh appearance
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Uzbekistan – first appearance
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Jordan – first appearance
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Tunisia – seventh appearance
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South Africa – fourth appearance
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Ivory Coast – fourth appearance
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Scotland – ninth appearance
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Algeria – fifth appearance
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New Zealand – third appearance
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Paraguay – ninth appearance
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Egypt – fourth appearance
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Cape Verde – first appearance
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Taste – second appearance
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Norway – fourth appearance
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Panama – second appearance
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Ghana – fifth appearance
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Haiti – second appearance
Who will replace Nicolás Larcamón as Cruz Azul coach?
Former Cruz Azul defender Joel Huiqui, a cult hero of Mexican soccer who coached the club’s Under-21 team, will take over as caretaker ahead of Sunday’s game against Necaxa and the postseason.
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Many of the club’s former coaches could be candidates that the team’s fan base would like to see return. Martín Anselmi had an ugly exit, but after struggling with Porto and Botafogo he could consider returning to the club. So would Juan Reynoso, a former Cruz Azul player who led the team to its last league title before an unsuccessful stint as coach of the national team in his native Peru.
It is unlikely that Vicente Sánchez, the coach who led Cruz Azul to the CCC title after the departure of Anselmi – promoted to the first team in a similar way to Huiqui – will arrive. He still works with Emelec in Ecuador and never connected with Cruz Azul sports director Iván Alonso.
One of Mexico’s “big four,” the club that has historically won the most trophies and has the most support, Cruz Azul’s 2021 title broke an infamous 24-year streak without a national championship. The 2021 triumph remains his last trophy in Mexico, although he has already booked his place in the 2029 Club World Cup thanks to his victory in the 2025 CCC.
This article originally appeared in USA TODAY: Cruz Azul fires Nicolás Larcamon and appoints cult hero Joel Huiqui as interim
