As many of us fans look forward to a New Year of awesome futbol games, now's a great time to mention the return of La Liga Mexicana on Telemundo. According to the official site of the popular TV channel, the first game to be televised will be Necaxa v/s Jaguares de Chiapas, on Friday, January 7, 2011 at 21:10 ET. The two teams will be playing on Estadio Victoria. The next several games will be shown on Saturday, January 8th. Here is part of the schedule that is posted so far:

La Liga Mexicana - Saturday, January 8, 2011

18:00 - Cruz Azul v/s Estudiantes - Estadio Azul
18:00 - Monterrey v/s San Luis Potosi - Estadio Tecnologico
18:00 - Queretaro v/s U. De N. Leon - Estadio La Corregidora
20:00 - Santos Laguna v/s Atlante - TSM Corona
21:45 - Atlas v/s Morelia - Estadio Jalisco


Sunday, January 9, 2011

13:00 - Puebla v/s Guadalajara - Estadio Cuauhtemoc
13:00 - Toluca v/s UNAM - Estadio Nemesio Diez
17:00 - America v/s Pachuca - Estadio Azteca


Friday, January 14, 2011

21:10 - Estudiantes v/s Monterrey - Estadio 3 de Marzo


Saturday, January 15, 2011

18:00 - Jaguares de Chiapas v/s Club America - Estadio Victor Manuel Reyna
20:00 - U. De N. Leon v/s Necaxa - Estadio Universitaro
20:00 - Pachuca v/s Toluca - Estadio Miguel Hidalgo
21:45 - Atlas v/s Queretaro - Estadio Jalisco
21:45 - San Luis Potosi v/s Puebla - Estadio Alfonso Lastras
22:00 - Atlante v/s Cruz Azul - Estadio Andres Quintana Roo


Sunday, January 16, 2011

13:00 - Morelia v/s Guadalajara - Estadio Morelos
13:00 - UNAM v/s Santos Laguna - Estadio Olimpico Universitaro


Friday, January 21, 2011

21:10 - Necaxa v/s Atlas - Estadio Victoria


The current reigning champions of the league, Monterrey, are in Group 1 for the Clausura 2011 with Estudiantes, Guadalajara, Necaxa, Santos Laguna, and U. de N. Leon. While Santos Laguna (who nearly took the championship but ended up getting second place again) will probably be the primary rivals for Monterrey, futbol always has many surprises in store; you never know what unlikely team will be the black horse (think back to FIFA World Cup 2010, Spain v/s Switzerland - 0:1). That being said, it will be interesting to see how Club Leon does as a contender. While they have always been favorites for getting promoted to the Primera Division, they'll have to face the two toughest teams in the league, let alone the other "black horse" teams, Estudiantes and Necaxa. Guadalajara and Club Leon will also be an interesting pairing, though it's a shame Chivas aren't in the same group as their primary rivals, Club America, who are in Group 2. CA are in the same group as Atlante, Atlas, Pachuca, San Luis Potosi, and Toluca. Group 3 consists of Cruz Azul, Jaguares de Chiapas, Morelia, Puebla, Queretaro, and UNAM (Pumas). In the latter group, I'll be on the lookout for Cruz Azul v/s UNAM, not only because these teams have a famous rivalry, but because Pumas have been improving quite nicely this past year. They're a team that's been around for awhile, and all they really need is a good coach. While the Pumas finished in 4th place in the Apertura 2010, coach Guillermo Vazquez was able to accomplish a great deal with this team, and will hopefully continue to contribute his wisdom to the team. Vazquez himself started out as a midfielder for Pumas UNAM in 1984, so his coaching tactics should come as no surprise. He played for the Pumas for 6 years, before playing for a variety of other teams in the Primera Division, including Estudiantes, Monterrey, and Pachuca. This is the first team he has coached, and he is brilliant at it. Nonetheless, there will be plenty of contenders for the Clausura championship. The fact that some of these teams (Santos, Monterrey, Cruz Azul, Toluca) are also playing in the Concacaf Champions League will likewise affect the way this tournament plays out.