One of the most celebrated football clubs of Costa Rica’s First Division has once again cemented its reputation as a “Slayer of Mexican Clubs.” Liga Deportiva Alajuelense (LDA) is headed to the semifinal round of the CONCACAF Champions League, also known as CONCAChampions, after holding off Cruz Azul to a 1 – 1 draw at the Alejandro Morera Soto Stadium.

Source: LDA

The manudos played a night game in a packed stadium near downtown Alajuela. As described by the official CONCACAF match report:

Armando Alonso put Alajuelense in front in the second minute, when he latched onto a shot by Johan Venegas that deflected off Cruz Azul defender Fausto Pinto and hammered it home at the far post.

It was Alonso’s third goal of the competition.

Cruz Azul responded six minutes later. Gerardo Torrado received a deflected effort that caromed out to the top of the 18-yard box and put a low, hard shot from 22 yards just past goalkeeper Patrick Pemberton, who dived to his right.

Things got ugly at the end of the match, which was played with equal amounts of skill and brawn. LDA’s Porfirio Lopez exchanged a few words with Mariano Pavone shortly after the final whistle, and the situation escalated therefrom. Players from both clubs jumped into the fray, which started on the pitch and continued in the locker rooms. CONCACAF officials are investigating the incident and will issue a report within 48 hours. There is a chance that LDA could lose the right to play at the Morera Soto, which will force them to play at the Chinese-donated National Stadium in La Sabana.

LDA also advanced to the semifinal round during the previous edition of the CONCACAF Champions League. This time, however, the club is in good company as one more team from Costa Rica is already in the semifinals and another one is highly expected to advance.

Club Sport Herediano (CSH), a club owned by an expat from the United States, has also secured a spot in the knockout stage of the CONCAChampions. Deportivo Saprissa is expected to advance as well. Should all clubs from Costa Rica make it to the semifinals, they will not have to face each other as explained by Leonardo Pandolfo Lach of sports daily Al Dia. There is a strong chance, however, that a football club from Costa Rica will take the CONCACAF Championship this time around.