Mexico manager Juan Carlos Osorio was delighted to see Hirving Lozano move to Europe from Liga MX, saying he and others in the Mexican national setup helped the 22-year-old go from Pachuca to PSV in the summer.
Lozano helped Tuzos to the CONCACAF Champions League crown before joining PSV this summer. He's since enjoyed a breakout year in the Netherlands, where his 13 goals lead the Eredivisie. The fantastic season has increased speculation that he'll move on from Eindhoven after the season, like Osorio's former Atletico Nacional player Davinson Sanchez did after a year with Ajax.
"It was a great move for Lozano to join PSV. I almost begged the (Pachuca) sporting director to allow him to move, and Andres (Guardado) also played a role in the transfer," Osorio told Eindhovens Dagblad . "He has started scoring more and experienced a different sort of pressure. But don't underestimate the Mexican league. A lot of foreign players struggle.
"There are bound to be clubs that will make approaches for Lozano. It's up to him to decide (whether he should stay another year). Davinson Sanchez left the Eredivisie after one year and that could be an option. He is developing well in the Eredivisie, though."
There already has been speculation about who the next Liga MX player to make the jump across the Atlantic will be, with some fixating on Lozano's former Pachuca teammate Erick Gutierrez. With Osorio in Eindhoven to check in on Lozano as his travels to see his players based in Europe continue, he was asked if PSV could be a good destination for "El Guti."
"Would PSV be a good club for Erick Gutierrez? He should go to a club that suits his style of play as a midfielder," he said. "He will learn new things abroad and pop up in front of goal even more often."
It's clear, though, that Osorio would like to see players continue to make moves abroad and test themselves in Europe. He highlighted having players in form in the top leagues as a bellwether of El Tir's success in Russia this summer.
"It's clear that we are in a tough group at the World Cup. South Korea are quite possibly the strongest Asian team, Sweden beat Italy and Netherlands, while Germany are the favorites to win it," he said. "We have 13 players who play in Europe, we have a good chance of reaching a high level if seven or eight of them are in good form come May."
Lozano is set to return from suspension on March 17 against VV Venlo before reuniting with Osorio in the United States for Mexico's friendly games against Iceland and Croatia.
