Alejandro Zendejas led a spirited second-leg playoff comeback for Club América against Pumas UNAM.
If Alejandro Zendejas’ performance in the Liga MX playoffs is any indicator, he is doing everything possible to earn a spot on the U.S. World Cup roster. Despite Club América’s dramatic comeback attempt ultimately falling short, the U.S. winger has left Mauricio Pochettino with a lasting impression and plenty to consider.
Zendejas spearheaded América’s effort to erase a three-goal deficit in the second leg of its Liguilla quarterfinal against top-seeded Pumas UNAM. The American winger scored twice after assisting the opening goal in a wild 3-3 draw in Mexico City. Unfortunately for the eighth-seeded América, Liga MX rules dictate that the higher-seeded team advances in the event of an aggregate draw, so top-seeded Pumas moved on to the semifinals to face Pachuca, despite a 6-6 aggregate stalemate.
The two sides had also drawn 3-3 in the first leg the previous weekend, with Zendejas converting a late penalty. On Sunday night, Pumas raced to a 3-0 lead within 23 minutes, seemingly taking control and clinching a semifinal spot. That’s when Zendejas took over.
First, he set up Patricio Salas from a corner kick in the 30th minute to cut the lead. Ten minutes later, he pulled América within one with another penalty past Pumas goalkeeper and Costa Rican legend Keylor Navas. In the 61st minute, Zendejas beat Navas in the air, heading in from close range to improbably level the match.
– 23′: Pumas 3-0 Club América (Agg. 6-3)
– 30′: Pumas 3-1 Club América (Alex Zendejas assist)
– 40′: Pumas 3-2 Club América (Alex Zendejas goal)
– 61′: Pumas 3-3 Club América (Alex Zendejas goal)
América still needed a fourth goal to overcome the tiebreaker, and they earned a penalty in the 87th minute. Henry Martín, not Zendejas, stepped up but hit the post, missing the chance to take the aggregate lead and send América through.
Zendejas’ playoff heroics came after a regular Clausura season in which he missed time due to injury but still managed three goals and three assists in 10 appearances.
He is vying for a place on the U.S. World Cup team, though he hasn’t featured for Pochettino since scoring an impressive opener against Japan in September 2025. That win kicked off a five-match unbeaten run (4-0-1) for the U.S., which ended with consecutive losses to Belgium and Portugal in late March. His absence from those two matches drew attention from América manager André Jardine, who questioned the roster decision and called Zendejas one of the top three players in all of Liga MX.
Whether that is enough to earn one of the 26 spots on the U.S. World Cup squad will be decided when Pochettino announces his roster on May 26.
