León Rests Daniel Arcila Before Puebla Match in Liga MX

León will face Puebla in the Apertura 2026 Liga MX match with top scorer Daniel Arcila absent from the starting lineup on October 9 at Estadio Cuauhtémoc, as coach Javier Gandolfi opted to rest the Colombian forward after his national team involvement. According to Bolavip, Arcila was available on the bench and physically fit, but León avoided rushing his return after the FIFA break. The attacker leads León's scoring chart this tournament with four goals.

León entered the match in fifth place with 17 points after five wins, two draws and three losses, according to Cuarto Poder. Puebla held ninth place with 14 points after four victories, two draws and four defeats.

Gandolfi had previously highlighted the importance of the Puebla fixture after León's 2-1 win over Juárez. The coach viewed Puebla as a direct opponent during the final stretch of the regular season.

"The match with Puebla for me will also be a final, it is a direct rival." said Javier Gandolfi, León head coach. The León manager also discussed the challenges created by the FIFA break, when several players joined national teams before the Juárez match. León later prepared for the Puebla visit with the full squad returning.

"This match was complex, the one today against Juárez, because there are distractions, there are many distractions during a FIFA break, you have the call-ups, you have maybe two days after a match that are given off to the player." said Javier Gandolfi, León head coach. Gandolfi said León would focus on the upcoming opponent before looking ahead to later matches against other strong teams. The team was seeking to continue its positive run after four consecutive home victories.

"We will prepare the run of matches, but I am not skipping any game." said Javier Gandolfi, León head coach. The coach emphasized that Puebla was the immediate priority before the match at Estadio Cuauhtémoc. León's next preparation step was detailed ahead of the Jornada 11 fixture. "I can assure you that tonight I will already start analyzing Puebla." said Javier Gandolfi, León head coach.

According to TUDN, Puebla and León met in a Jornada 11 match on October 9, with León seeking to move closer to the top positions while Puebla looked to recover after a winless stretch since matchday eight.