Javier ‘Chicharito’ Hernandez had a major disappointment when he wasn’t called for Mexico to play at the Qatar 2022 World Cup. Though the striker had a very good season with LA Galaxy at the MLS, former coach Gerardo Martino left him out for disciplinary reasons.
Chicharito is the best all-time scorer for in Mexico’s national team history with 52 goals. He leads a list of extraordinary names such as Jared Borgetti, Cuauhtemoc Blanco and Luis Hernandez.
Now, with the signing of Diego Cocca as new coach, the door was supposedly open for Javier Hernandez to come back with Mexico after more than three years without being considered. However, that won’t happen at the 2023 Concacaf Nations League Finals. These are the important reasons why.
Chicharito Hernandez won’t play the 2023 Concacaf Nations League Finals with Mexico
A few weeks ago, Diego Cocca confirmed publicly he had already spoken with Chicharito about a possible return to the national team. With a new project towards the 2026 World Cup, Cocca said Javier Hernandez had the same chances as anyone else. No sanctions for him.
However, after Mexico published their preliminar list for the semifinal against the United States in the Concacaf Nations League (June 15th at Las Vegas), Chicharito’s name doesn’t appear.
The forwards called by Cocca are: Santiago Gimenez (Feyenoord), Alexis Vega (Chivas), Henry Martin (America), Ozziel Herrera (Atlas), Raul Jimenez (Wolverhampton), Roberto de la Rosa (Pachuca) and Uriel Antuna (Cruz Azul).
Of course, the decision is very surprising as Hernandez remains the star of LA Galaxy in the MLS. Furthermore, other names with no activity at all in their clubs, such as Raul Jimenez with Wolverhampton, got the call from Diego Cocca.
Chicharito’s next chance could be the 2023 Gold Cup (June 24-July 16) where some of the players from Europe might not receive permission to participate by their clubs (Santiago Gimenez and Raul Jimenez).