Manchester United and Liverpool are locked in a transfer battle to sign highly-rated Mexican midfielder Hector Herrera. The 22-year-old played a significant role in his country’s shock success at the Olympic Games this summer, in which the Central American side beat Brazil 2-1 in the final.
With rumblings that Brendan Rodgers is an admirer of the Pachuca man and is considering an offer, United have entered the fray over the last 48 hours, with the Mexican club’s sporting director Andres Fassi confirming that Herrera could well be Premier League-bound.
“There is official interest but there’s nothing else to add at this time. We have a document,” Fassi revealed.
“We know he’s going to emigrate to England. Manchester United and Liverpool have talked to us. We want him to continue with Pachuca. But when he decides to leave, the club will give him the opportunity to do so.”
Herrera has only recently made his rise to senior football, as he learnt his trade in the youth and reserve Pachuca sides. He made his senior debut in July 2011, but has been rewarded with a number of individual accolades since due to impressive showings. After 14 appearances for the Pachuca first team the midfielder was awarded the Young Player of the 2011 Mexican Apertura tournament, before being recognised internationally.
This generation of Mexican footballers have the nation hopeful of a successful era at senior level. After the nation won the Gold Cup in 2011, Olympic glory has only gone on to bring further attention to a talented and promising group of players. Mexico also won the 2012 Toulon Tournament, with Herrara once more to the fore in winning the ‘Meilleur joueur award’ as the most outstanding player of the tournament. Previous winners include Thierry Henry, Alan Shearer, Juan Roman Riquelme, David Ginola and Manuel Rui Costa.
Herrera’s abilities as a box-to-box player have been applauded in Mexico, however he is certainly no substitute for failed United target Lucas Moura or a replacement for Paul Scholes. His energy, enthusiasm and work-rate however have landed him English suitors, with Sir Alex Ferguson keeping an eye on the Central American nation after the success of Javier Hernandez at Old Trafford.
Herrara has admitted that he is interested in a move to Europe, but at this stage has not heard anything concrete about his future.
“The truth is that so far I know nothing about what is happening, I am not aware,” he confessed to Raza Deportiva.
“From what I’ve heard there has been some news, but I have had no approach from the Pachuca club president or the people from Manchester.
“If given the opportunity to emigrate to European football, of course I’d go but I have wait to see what the club officials say. I did not expect it so soon, I did not expect these big clubs to be tracking me after such a short time, but this is the result of the sacrifices I have made.”
Nicknamed ‘Zorro’, Herrara could well be a name shooting into the limelight of English football before the end of August.
Add Sportslens to your Google News Feed!
