Juan Ignacio Dinenno‘s two first-half goals led Pumas to a 2-1 win over visiting Cruz Azul in Tuesday’s CONCACAF Champions League semifinal first leg.
The second leg will be played in Mexico City on April 12.
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Dinenno first fired home in a goalmouth scramble in the 37th minute before following that up with a close-range header in first-half stoppage time.
In the 83rd minute, Cruz Azul’s Ivan Morales dribbled into the penalty area down the left flank and crossed the ball to Christian Tabo, who rolled in a left-footed shot to halve the deficit.
The other semifinal first leg will be played on Wednesday when New York City FC visits the Seattle Sounders.
Mexican teams have won the CONCACAF Champions League each of the past 16 seasons. No U.S. team has captured the championship since LA Galaxy prevailed in 2000.