Carlos Vela To Make Mexico Debut Against Netherlands; Will He Start?

For the first time in four years, the best soccer player in Mexico will actually be playing for Mexico. El Tri manager, Miguel Herrera, announced last week that Real Sociedad star, Carlos Vela, has accepted a call-up by the Mexican national team for the first time in over three years and will make his return to the pitch on Wednesday against the Netherlands.

“Carlos will be there in Holland,” Herrera told ESPN last Wednesday. “He’s excited to come back, he is committed and ready to give us everything he knows.”

In 2010, Vela was called up to the national team and was a tremendous part of the team’s success during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Vela was injured in group play, hurting his team’s chances of advancing further in that tournament. Shortly thereafter, in September of the same year, Vela was suspended six months for throwing a party in Monterrey, MX after a game against Colombia.

Vela returned after the suspension in February 2011, but his relationship with then coach, Jose Manuel de la Torre and other El Tri executives had become toxic. His performance on the pitch didn’t help either, and Vela gave himself a self-imposed exile from the national team.

The 25-year-old Cancun native was asked to join the team many times over the past four years, including by current coach, Miguel Herrera, before the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Once again, Vela rejected the team and it looked as if he would never play for El Tri again. However, Herrera flew to Europe to speak with many Mexican internationals playing in the soccer crazed continent and spoke to each player individually about their importance to the team.

This time, Vela accepted Herrera’s offer and he will be suiting up for El Tri on Wednesday in Holland in Mexico’s rematch with the Netherlands. It’s unclear at the moment if Vela will start in his first game back especially with three other forwards: Giovani dos Santos, Javier Hernandez, and Raul Jimenez on the roster. If Vela doesn’t start, he will most likely see playing time on the pitch as Herrera will want to see how well Vela fits in with his formation and new teammates.