Monterrey beat the LA Galaxy 2-1 at the Home Depot Center on Wednesday night in the first leg of their CONCACAF Champions League semifinal.
The Mexican side scored two goals in the final 10 minutes to come back and beat the reigning MLS champions. Humberto Suazo scored in the 82nd minute, and Aldo de Nigris added the second, and eventual game-winner, in the 90th.
The Galaxy got off to a good start, with AJ DeLaGarza scoring in the 28th minute to put the home side ahead 1-0. But they couldn't hold off favorites Monterrey long enough to secure a much-needed win.
It was a back-and-forth battle that was full of scrappy tackles and lots of fouls. Neither team ever seemed to find a rhythm, struggling to complete passes. It may not have been particularly pretty, but for Monterrey, it was effective.
''The game has to be played the full 90 minutes,'' Monterrey manager Victor Manuel Vucetich said. ''You just have to find the right time to be able to try to turn it around on the field. It's not that you concentrate all your efforts on just one part of the match. You need to play the full 90 minutes to actually win.''
LA will travel to Monterrey next Wednesday with a big hill to climb in the second leg of this CONCACAF Champions League semifinal.
The winner of this semifinal will face either Mexico's Santos Laguna or the Seattle Sounders in the title series later this month and the first week of May. Santos beat the Sounders 1-0 Tuesday night in Seattle.
