Exploits that won Erick “Cubo” Torres recognition as a Major League Soccer All-Star have also drawn the attention of Mexican national team head coach Miguel Herrera, who is set to call on the Chivas USA striker for next month’s friendlies against Chile and Bolivia. Naming the six non-Liga MX players who will join the team for its Sept. 6 and 9 matches, Herrera’s will give the 21-year-old Guadalajara loanee his first time with El Tri’s senior squad.
Torres, who has 21 goals in 38 games since joining Chivas USA last season, is part of a group that includes Real Vallecano’s Javier Aquino, Villarreal’s Giovani Dos Santos, Valencia’s Andrés Guardado, Porto’s Hector Herrera, and Málaga’s Guillermo Ochoa. The remainder of the squad, to be named later, will be made up of players from Mexico’s domestic league.
The most notable of the team’s absences is Javier “Chicharito” Hernández, though the striker’s uncertain status with Manchester United may have been a factor in the decision. And while Raúl Jiménez was also excluded from the team, the former Club América forward was expected to receive this additional time to settle at Atlético Madrid.
In their place, Torres will get his first chance to impress with Mexico’s senior squad. While names like Oribe Peralta, Jiménez, Hernández, and Alan Pulido mean there’s stiff competition for time with El Tri, today’s news represented a first step for the 21-year-old. He’s got plenty of time to take the next.