Mexico midfielder Omar Govea has signed for Royal Antwerp on a one-season loan from Porto, the the Belgian club confirmed on Thursday.
The 22-year-old was on loan with Royal Excel Mouscron last season and impressed, earning a call-up to the Mexico squad last November and then again in the March friendlies earlier this year.
Govea’s agreement includes a purchase option and the San Luis Potosi native could debut as early as Sunday, when Antwerp takes on Club Brugge.
Govea isn’t the only Mexico international…
The FC crew discuss Carlos Vela’s performances early on at LAFC and whether he can make the case for a spot on Mexico’s World Cup squad.
After Jonathan Gonzalez’s second-half cameo against Bosnia, ESPN’s Herculez Gomez questions Juan Carlos Osorio’s decision to deploy him in a more advanced position.
The Mexico squad is preparing for two pivotal friendlies over the international break as Juan Carlos Osorio continues to hone his players ahead of picking his World Cup roster. There are a few spots remaining for the trip to Russia, but not many. Therefore there are players with plenty to prove against Iceland and Croatia.
ESPN FC have some ideas as to who needs a good break in order to book a ticket to the World Cup.
Oswaldo Alanis
This might sound slightly out of left field given that Chivas…
Gonzalez’ debut for Mexico was lively and full of promise as the midfield looks set for years to come.
MEXICO CITY — Heading into Wednesday night’s game in San Antonio, Tex., the idea that dominated chat among fans was that the friendly against Bosnia & Herzegovina would be the last chance to impress Juan Carlos Osorio. The first half against Bosnia had few details of note other than observing Orbelin Pineda playing on the left flank. Elias Hernandez played more centrally as one of the midfielders in the 4-3-3 formation, rarely venturing down the right flank where he’s had a lot of success with…
ESPN FC’s Taylor Twellman doesn’t understand comments that Jonathan Gonzalez fell through the cracks in U.S. Soccer after he made numerous appearances for the youth national team.
Carlos Vela joins the FC crew to talk about leaving Europe to join MLS expansion team LAFC, the brewing rivalry with LA Galaxy and Mexico’s World Cup outlook. Time is running out for players to make an impact on Mexico coach Juan Carlos Osorio as the clock ticks down toward the 2018 World Cup. Thursday saw the squad announced for next week’s friendly vs. Bosnia & Herzegovina in San Antonio, Texas, so we asked our writers to react to some of the names included and excluded.
In: Henry Martin
Henry Martin’s move from Tijuana to America has revived his international career.
As expected, Osorio’s introductory squad for 2018 was a mix of old and new. Barred from selecting any players active in Europe, the coach picked a few mainstays including…
The guys discuss Bruce Arena’s TV appearance, Mexico’s successful international break and how to fix the MLS Cup playoffs.
With Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez out with a hamstring strain that could take two weeks to heal and Andres Guardado scheduled to play Monday night, this weekend’s action of Mexico’s European legion wasn’t as heavy. Most of Mexico’s players were coming off a week-and-a-half stretch that included friendlies against Belgium and Poland. Chicharito got injured during the Belgium game, and that’s why he missed David Moyes’ debut with West Ham, which finished with a 2-0 loss to Watford.
One of the main…
Herculez Gomez and Sebastian Salazar discuss the challenges Belgium and Poland will present to Juan Carlos Osorio and Mexico.
The rise of Omar Govea could not be ignored any longer.
Govea, a former San Luis and Club America youth prospect, made the leap to Mexico-friendly FC Porto in 2015, initially on loan. With the Dragons’ B squad, the midfielder proved the team’s scouts right with solid midfield play and a box-to-box mentality resembling his compatriot Hector Herrera’s exploits with the senior team.
Another loan, this time to Belgium, has made even casual fans turn their heads. Now playing mostly as an attacking…
Wilfried Zaha’s injury-time equaliser earned Crystal Palace a point against West Ham.
MEXICO CITY — Hirving “Chucky” Lozano is breaking records in the Netherlands, while Javier “Chicharito” Hernandez once again got his name on the scoresheet. Later this week, Juan Carlos Osorio will announce his roster for Mexico’s upcoming friendlies against Belgium and Poland, and fortunately many of the key players, who will be in the roster, are going through positive runs.
Here’s a look back at this week’s Heroes and Villains:
Heroes
After not scoring a league goal since Sept. 23, Chicharito…
Despite trying various options in the position, Juan Carlos Osorio has yet to find a holding midfielder in his mold.
Mexico’s central midfield conundrum needs a solution before Russia 2018
The fact Mexico coach Juan Carlos Osorio admitted in Jan. 2016 that he was interested in calling up Argentine Guido Pizarro to El Tri tells a story.
It speaks of the Colombian’s struggle at the time in finding the type of holding midfielder he is looking for with the Mexican national team. And that struggle continues.
Osorio’s requisites for the deeper-lying central midfielder in a 4-3-3 mean he’d find it difficult to hit…
Omar Govea is not a household name in Mexico yet but his quick start has him knocking on the door of a national team call-up.
MEXICO CITY — The story of Omar Govea took an important turn when he left Mexico for Portugal in 2015. At the time, FC Porto got Govea on-loan from Liga MX’s Club America. A year later Porto purchased his playing rights from America, but Govea would only get playing time with FC Porto B that season. Although he spent his significant formative years with America and Porto, Govea never made a first division debut with either side. That breakthrough finally came this summer with Belgian side Royal…
Javier Hernandez’s brace for West Ham comes at a good time with Mexico’s qualifiers right around the corner.
With two World Cup qualifiers scheduled for early September, call-ups for the Mexican national team are set to be released later on this week. Although some players like Javier Hernandez or Hector Moreno are likely to have a spot guaranteed, countless others are still fighting for recognition.
Keeping that in mind, here are the latest best and worst performances from some of the more noteworthy Mexican names both at home and abroad.
Warming Up
Javier Hernandez, FW, West Ham (England)
Why he’s…