The footballers of the Pumas and the León Club, before the game.ALFREDO ESTRELLA / AFP
The Pumas are entrusted to resilience.
At this point last week, the university club was practically eliminated in the semifinals of Liga MX.
Cruz Azul conceded four goals in the first leg.
The reaction capacity was such that they managed to overcome with four goals, tie the series and go through position in the table.
That going to and from the soccer underworld was a boost to the team's self-esteem.
Against Leon, they knew how to control the rival enough to despair.
Those of the UNAM won it 1-0 and, a minute from the end, in an awkwardness of the defense they received the 1-1 draw.
El León, the best team in the Mexican championship in the first phase, did not play the phony.
They showed themselves on the field of the Olympic University Stadium as the team that enjoys taking possession and being the center of attention.
Their leader on the pitch, the little dribbler Luis Montes, traced the passes towards the attack.
The Ecuadorian Ángel Mena, a sprinter on the right, was the one who led the defenders the most to look at the number on his back.
The Pumas players, however, closed the way.
And once blocked they would go out at the top of their lungs to finish a counterattack.
The most influential footballer in the UNAM uniform was Juan Manuel Iturbe, an on-and-off talent in Roma, who barely blew out his best shots on goal.
Outside the University Olympic Stadium a group of fans tried to encourage the Pumas despite the fact that the club itself asked not to do so and ignoring the health authorities of Mexico City, an entity that estimates 30,254 active cases of covid-19 and adds 18,663 deaths .
The second half, with some Pumas who had measured their rival, began to loosen more.
Juan Dinenno, a fixed nine, tried to receive the ball from his back, as if he were playing in the NBA, to try to nurture his teammates on the wings, including the elastic Carlos González.
Carlos Gutiérrez, on minute 72, found a hole in the area for González's bald head, who, in a head turn, beat León's goalkeeper Rodolfo Cota.
With that goal, the Pumas were giving a break because the advantage substantially reduced the anxiety of defining the final away from home.
In the last minutes, when the defenders of Pumas were preparing to reject the balls as if it were a procedure, León's pride was stronger.
David Ramírez fought a ball down the wing, launched a cross with few expectations that Emmanuel Gigliotti converted into a goal, at 1-1.
The blow stunned the UNAM team.
The final, to be played next Sunday (20:30 local time), will decide which team will be able to embroider the eighth champion star in the Mexican League.