America will face Pachuca on Sunday, October 25, 2026, in Jornada 14 of the Apertura 2026, and the biggest question around the match is whether Alejandro Zendejas can play. He left América’s 5-2 win over Atlas during the week with an injury, even after assisting and scoring, leaving his status uncertain for a game that comes with very different stakes for the two sides.
That is why the matchup is drawing attention now. América already has its ticket to the Liguilla and sits at the top of the table, while Pachuca is antepenultimate with 13 points and needs a result to keep its tournament hopes alive. The game will be played at the Estadio Banorte Azteca, giving América another home match in a run that has already pushed it into the postseason.
Zendejas was central to América’s latest win before the injury forced him off. Dagoberto Espinoza was rested and did not play against Atlas, but the wider concern is how América balances a match it can afford to approach from a position of comfort with the possibility of losing one of its sharper attacking pieces. If Zendejas is unavailable, the team will go into Sunday without the player who had just tilted the week’s result in its favor.
Pachuca, meanwhile, arrives after losing 2-1 at home to Cruz Azul during the week, with Salomón Rondón still leading the scoring table. That is the part of the picture that makes this fixture more than a routine league date: América can look ahead to the Liguilla, while Pachuca is playing against the standings and the clock. The result on Sunday will not change América’s place in the playoff field, but it could tighten the pressure on Pachuca and sharpen the focus on Zendejas’s availability.
For América, the next step is simple: the club wants to know whether Zendejas can recover in time for Sunday. For Pachuca, there is only one way to keep pace — win at the Estadio Banorte Azteca and hope the margin for error does not disappear before Jornada 14 ends.
