Henry Martín's Hat-Trick and the Liga MX 'Curse' Story Nobody Wants to Talk About

Henry Martín's three goals against Necaxa are not the story worth discussing. The real story is how Liga MX, Mexico's top division, is quietly restructuring itself by allowing small clubs to disappear from the top flight — and how fans, instead of examining that, are searching for a "curse" on the pitch. In Matchday 10 of Apertura 2026, América beat Necaxa 4-2 away. Henry Martín scored a hat-trick. Miguel Borja scored the fourth. The visitors took the lead four times in a match where Necaxa's defense was repeatedly stretched by two forwards who pushed high. Guillermo Almada, América's coach, kept the attacking formation he has used all season and played Martín as the highest forward. This is not the first time Martín has scored a hat-trick. And this is not the first time his opponents have faced trouble afterward. Three clubs that have conceded a hat-trick to Martín have since left Liga MX — and fans are calling it a "curse." But looking closer, this "curse" has nothing mysterious about it. It is simply the natural consequence of a league undergoing restructuring. Liga MX has suspended its relegation mechanism for several years. Instead, clubs leaving the top division typically do so for financial, ownership, or franchise relocation reasons — not sporting results. Small clubs with limited resources are the most vulnerable to these structural changes. Necaxa, with its modest scale and resources, is exactly that type of club. So when Martín scores a hat-trick against a small club, it is not a miracle. It is the inevitable outcome of a big club facing a small club in a league that increasingly prioritizes commerce over competition. Martín's numbers this season are 6 goals in 8 matches, or 0.82 goals per 90 minutes. This is an impressive figure, but it must be viewed in the context of a small sample. Martín's current scoring conversion rate is likely to regress toward the mean in the coming weeks — that is basic statistical law, not a curse. Interestingly, América does not depend entirely on Martín. Borja also scored in this match, showing the team can generate goals from multiple sources. But the story still revolves around Martín — because he is in a race with himself to climb higher in the list of the club's all-time top scorers. At 33-34 years old this season, Martín is in the declining phase of the age curve for a striker. América may not find a worthy replacement in the short term, and managing Martín's workload will become a critical issue going forward. The "curse" will disappear when one of the "cursed" clubs survives the following season. That is not magic — it is statistics. The real question Liga MX needs to answer is not how many goals Martín can score, but when this league will stop allowing small clubs to vanish from the map of Mexican football.