Cavalry FC will try to continue making Canadian Premier League (CPL) history in Mexico City against Liga MX giants Pumas UNAM on Thursday night.
The Calgary-based club enters the away leg of the tie up 2-1 on aggregate as they look to become the first CPL team to advance to the round of 16 in the CONCACAF Champions Cup.
Winning the first leg against a club the stature of Pumas, which has three Champions Cup triumphs to its name, was already a remarkable achievement for Cavalry, as it became the first CPL team to ever defeat a Mexican team full stop.
But Cavalry was able to pull it off, even after going down 1-0 before half-time, as Canadian international Santiago López scored for the Mexican side.
Cavalry stormed back with two second half goals, the first from captain Charlie Trafford off a corner before striker Tobias Warschewski scored an absolute stunner to win the game in the 80th minute.
What makes the feat even more impressive is that Calgary’s ATCO Field is unsuited for play in Alberta’s harsh winter conditions, so the first leg had to be held at Starlight Stadium in Langford, B.C., where Pacific FC play their home games.
Additionally, while the CPL is just starting its preseason, Liga MX teams are in full mid-season form.
Going to Mexico and finishing the job will be a Herculean task, but the Cavs know what they’re up against.
Head coach Tommy Wheeldon Jr. says his team understands the mountain they’ll have to climb, and that his team will have to be ready.
“We expect a very difficult game, coming into what we would call the lion’s den, but this is the home of the Pumas,” he said in a press conference. “We know that this is their territory.”
Another challenge for Cavalry will be the altitude, with Estadio Olímpico Universitario sitting at over 2,200 feet above sea level, a height the likes of Cavalry has never encountered before.
At higher altitudes, there’s less oxygen in the air, meaning teams who aren’t used to playing at such heights tend to struggle breathing and tire out faster.
While in Canada, Cavalry had the advantage of temperatures that dropped below freezing on the night of the game on Vancouver Island, conditions unfamiliar to the majority of the Mexican squad.
“We’re coming here, we had the advantage in the snow and the cold in Canada, and now we come here and it’s hot, the altitude, the fans, so we know it’s going to be a war," Trafford told reporters ahead of the game. "We know it’s going to be a very tough game, but that’s what you want as a player.”
While Pumas started more of a rotated squad in Canada, the expectation is that Cavalry will face a full-strength team in Mexico City, with the potential for stars such as Adalberto Carrasquilla and Jorge Ruvelcaba entering the team from the start.
“We have to respect that, we have to respect the conditions and our opponent,” Wheeldon Jr. said. “We know we can't, as we would say, copy and paste the game plan that won last time. We have to find a new way to compete.”
Around a dozen Foot Soldiers, members of Cavalry’s official supporters’ group, have made the trip down to Mexico City to support their team.
If Cavalry is to advance on Thursday, Costa Rican club LD Alajuelense would be their round of 16 opponent.
