Leon's dismal start to the Liga MX season continued as the champion lost 3-1 at home to Monterrey while Ronaldinho scored in a was on the scoresheet for Queretaro but it was not enough to get a point in a 2-1 loss at Atlas.
Leon, winner of both the Apertura and Clausura titles in Mexico last term, has made a very poor start to its defence of the former.
And the club's latest defeat - an eighth in 11 matches this season - sees it 16th in the table, just three points above the bottom-placed Morelia.
Monterrey lies second, and departed Leon with a fifth win in six league clashes.
Dorlan Pabon fired it ahead in sensational fashion, taking two touches before thrashing home from 20 yards in the 16th minute.
Mauro Boselli levelled proceedings three minutes after the break, nodding home from three yards after a corner had been flicked on.
But parity lasted just 13 minutes before Jesus Zavala scored from a header, with his powerful near-post effort too good for Leon goalkeeper Christian Martinez.
And Pabon wrapped up the win with six minutes left when he simply side-footed beyond Martinez after a quick counter-attack.
Monterrey is four points behind leader America, which recorded a comfortable 2-0 home win over Veracruz.
Michael Arroyo put Monterrey in front after 23 minutes, angling a left-foot effort into the bottom-right corner.
And a looping Paul Aguilar header on the stroke of half-time settled the contest at Estadio Azteca.
Ronaldinho was on the scoresheet for Queretaro but it was not enough to get a point in a 2-1 loss at Atlas.
Enrique Esqueda gave Atlas the lead and Edy Brambila looked to have sealed the win with an 89th-minute goal.
Ronaldinho's 94th-minute free-kick ensured a nervy finish for the host. The Brazil star has scored in two of his three appearances so far in Mexico.
Atlas are five points adrift of America and just ahead of Toluca, who beat Guadalajara 3-1 on Thursday thanks to an Edgar Benitez double.
Morelia lost their seventh game of the season, slumping to a 1-0 home loss against Pachuca, while fellow strugglers Universidad Guadalajara drew 1-1 at Chiapas.
Pumas UNAM extended their unbeaten streak to six with a 2-1 win at Puebla, while Tigres UANL and Santos Laguna drew 1-1 and Tijuana and Cruz Azul played out a goalless draw.
one of the best players in the world now is playing at mexican league for the first time in his life, all the audience is really exited about it
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1. Marco Fabian: the Mexican Messi
When rumors swirled that the gold-medal winning midfielder was headed for the Qatari league, the local press there dubbed him the Mexican Messi. He is an attack-minded player with excellent ball control that gives him the ability to go on mazy runs through opposition defenses and at 5’7” is similar in stature to the Barcelona star. But he doesn’t create goals for others as often, lacking Messi’s passing skills, and though it has improved still doesn’t have the left-footed skills.
2. Ben Lederman: the American Messi
When rumors swirled that the gold-medal winning midfielder was headed for the Qatari league, the local press there dubbed him the Mexican Messi. He is an attack-minded player with excellent ball control that gives him the ability to go on mazy runs through opposition defenses and at 5’7” is similar in stature to the Barcelona star. But he doesn’t create goals for others as often, lacking Messi’s passing skills, and though it has improved still doesn’t have the left-footed skills.
2. Ben Lederman: the American Messi
Fatsis mentions Lederman in his Slate article and implores his readers to start the hype machine for someone so American. While Lederman is one of a cadre of ultra-young Americans in big-time European youth systems, the fact that he’s at La Masia makes him the obvious choice (though he was called Little Iniesta earlier in his career). He’s the top-rated midfielder in his class (he’d graduate high school in 2018) according to the youth soccer gurus at Top Drawer Soccer and already has experienced success at the U-14 level. He’s been praised for his excellent vision, and if there’s any doubt American fans are already dreaming of what could be take a look at the tweets that rolled in to writers who left the teen off of their projected 2018 World Cup rosters.
3. Hanson Boakai: the Canadian Messi
3. Hanson Boakai: the Canadian Messi
Lord knows Canadian soccer could use a Messi. “FC Edmonton phenom could become a ‘Canadian Messi’” read a headline in the Edmonton Journal about the Guinean-born midfielder. “ He has the potential to possibly be our Messi, if you like. ... He could develop into a Canadian Messi. Who knows?” said coach Collin Miller. The 17-year-old has several youth call-ups and trained with Fortuna Duesseldorf before the season. He has scored for the club in Canadian Championship play but is still looking for his scoring form in league play, something that will have to come quickly if he’s going to match the Argentine. We’ll see if he can get back in the team after joining the U-20 squad at the Milk Cup.
4. Alan Santos: the Salvadoran Messi
4. Alan Santos: the Salvadoran Messi
Santos burst onto the scene in El Salvador as a 10-year-old who, like most of the promising talent in the country, was snapped up at a young age by Metapan. In addition to being called the next Messi, he was also called “The Golden Child” upon signing. So no pressure. In addition to comparisons with Messi, Santos was also compared to legendary Salvadoran Magico Gonzalez. One message board posting called Santos, who, note, has been on earth for less time than it takes for Robert Caro to complete a volume of his LBJ biography, “the future of the national team.” Since then, there hasn’t been much of an update, but check back in five year and we’ll let you know if he’s made a debut.
5. Alex Morgan: the female Messi
5. Alex Morgan: the female Messi
The Portland Thorns and U.S. national team star was compared to Messi in a Bleacher Report article subtly titled “Alex Morgan Is the Lionel Messi of Women’s Soccer”, which totally does not seem like a trumped up headline designed to get clicks. The nut graph of the article says, “Certainly, their styles, while similar, are not the same,” which is accurate. It then makes the case that since they’re the best players on the best team and sometimes create goals …
Someone actually asked Morgan, a declared Barcelona fan, about the comparison. Morgan called it “an honor” and then discussed watching Abby Wambach win the women’s Player of the Year award in 2013.
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