Pachuca is set to make its CONCACAF Champions League debut Tuesday night in the first leg of a Preliminary Round series against Guatemalan side Jalapa at Estadio Hidalgo. It's not as if the Tuzos are strangers to regional or domestic success.

Pachuca won the CONCACAF Champions Cup in 2002, 2007 and 2008 and captured the Copa Sudamericana title in 2006 becoming the first team to win a continental club title outside of its confederation.

In the Mexican Primera Division, Pachuca won the Clausura title in 2007 and fell in the 2009 Clausura final to Pumas, 3-2 on aggregate in May.

One day later, manager Enrique Meza left the club after a hugely successful stint.

"I am saying goodbye to my friends, of a great club that gave me the opportunity to work, where I had many wonderful moments," Meza told reporters last month. "Thanks to everyone, to everyone that supported me, to the squad an exceptional group of players that defined a playing style which brought much satisfaction as well as headaches."

Meza moved on to Cruz Azul for his fourth stint with the club, while Pachuca hired Argentine Guillermo Rivarola, who spent eight months in charge of Pachuca's youth ranks, as its head coach.

"As a coach, I like to win everything from the midweek scrimmages to a league final or Copa Sudamericana," Rivarola told reporters. "That is the message I will give the players. That is the mentality and commitment I want."

The Rivarola era opened with a 3-2 win against Estudiantes Tecos in the opening of the Apertura campaign on Friday. Christian Gimenez scored the winning goal from the penalty spot in the 65th minute. Juan Carlos Cacho, in on loan from Pumas UNAM, and Damian Alvarez also scored for Pachuca.

While clearly the favorite in the opening leg at home, Pachuca face a dangerous Jalapa squad that defeated Municipal in the Liga Nacional de Fútbol Clausura final last month.

It was Jalapa's second title after Hector Trujillo's squad captured the 2007 Apertura championship, the first national title in the club's history.

"We are going excited and hoping to play well. This team could be assembled only recently, and with it we will try to put Guatemala's name in goo standing," coach Héctor Julián Trujillo said. "We are going well, we are forcus on the fact that we have to go and play well to show that we can play in an international tournament. We have worked very hard just to go, and not get a good result."