In one of the most dramatic closings of the Clausura 2026 league, Mixco tied the series against Cobán Imperial with two goals in the last two minutes of the second leg to tie the aggregate 2-2 and advance to the semifinals for the best position in the Clausura table.
Fabricio Benítez’s Chicharroneros seemed destined for elimination when the score reached the 88th minute without goals, but José Ramón Bolaños scored in the 89th and Manuel Moreno closed the comeback in the 90th to unleash madness at the Santo Domingo de Guzmán Stadium in one of the most shocking endings of the tournament.
The second leg was a Mixco monologue from the beginning. The Chicharroneros dominated much of the match with a constant offensive approach, generating chances with Eliser Quiñones, Pozuelos and José Bolaños without being able to beat goalkeeper Tomás Casas, who made several key interventions to keep the score at 0-0.
The expulsion of Marcos Acosta in the 12th minute for a foul on Kennedy Rocha left Cobán with ten men and opened the way even more for Mixco, although the Blue Princes resisted with defensive order for almost the entire match. The situation became more complicated for the Chicharroneros when Oscar González was also sent off in the 80th, leaving the match tied in numerical inferiority.
With time running out and the elimination practically consummated, Mixco found the goal in the final moments. Bolaños scored 1-0 in the 89th minute and just a minute later Manuel Moreno scored 2-0 to tie the aggregate at 2-2, activating the tiebreaker that favored the Chicharroneros for having finished better positioned in the Clausura 2026 table. “We had been working on it and thank God it was given to us, it is a miracle“Moreno expressed after the final whistle, summing up in a few words what the entire stadium felt in one of the most dramatic closures that the Guatemalan soccer league has experienced in recent years.
A series that seemed lost
Mixco came into this match needing to overcome the 0-2 deficit in the first leg at the José Ángel Rossi, a result that seemed almost insurmountable for the Chicharroneros. For much of the match the scoreboard did not move and Cobán’s classification seemed on track, but the two goals in the 89th and 90th minutes changed the entire situation in a matter of seconds in what was one of the most emotional moments of the Clausura 2026 league.
In the semifinals, Mixco will face the winner of the series between Comunicaciones and Antigua GFC, which is also played this Saturday at the Cementos Progreso Stadium. The Chicharroneros reach the next phase with the euphoria of a historic comeback and with Nicolás Martínez, the tournament’s top scorer with 15 goals, as their main offensive card to continue advancing in the search for the Clausura 2026 title.