By Canadian Press

Young forward Santiago Lopez building career in Mexico, turning heads with Canada

Aug 14, 2024 | 9:14 AM

Just 19, Santiago Lopez has a wealth of opportunities ahead of him.

A dual citizen, the young forward was a star for Canada at the recent CONCACAF U-20 Championship and played for the Mexican under-18 team in two tournaments last year.

In January, he made his senior debut for Pumas UNAM off the bench in a 3-1 win over Pachuca in Mexico’s Liga MX play. He made one more substitute appearance against Necaxa and has dressed for a half-dozen bench appearances.

Lopez, who turned 19 in June, was born in Morelia, Mexico, and was four when his parents moved to Ontario for work before returning to Mexico six years later. He enjoyed his time here, even the cold weather.

“I loved the winter,” Lopez, who played for Oakville Soccer Club as a youngster, said enthusiastically. ” My mum hated it. My dad hated it too. I loved it. I loved the snow. I loved everything about Canada, the culture, my friends. I still have friends from there.

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“Obviously living in Oakville is a huge difference than living in Mexico City, but I loved every moment.”

His father, who died three years ago, was an economist who worked in banking.

While he has yet to declare his international allegiance, Lopez enjoyed his recent stint with Canada.

“We had players from all around the world, from Europe, from MLS, from the Canadian league (CPL). From the first moment I went to Trinidad (for CONCACAF U-20 qualifying play) with them I thought they were a really good group, a really talented group. And we all had the same goal, which was going to the World Cup.”

He is not sure what lies ahead.

“I wish I knew what the future had for me but right now I’m really happy with Canada, the experience I had. I’m really happy at the improvements they’ve made. At Copa America, they showed that Canada has improved vastly in the last couple of years.

“I don’t know what’s going to happen next,” he added. “I’m just thinking about the present and doing things well with Pumas.”

Canada fell just short of qualifying for the 2025 FIFA U-20 World Cup in Chile, beaten 2-1 by Panama after extra time in a wild CONCACAF quarterfinal that saw three red cards — two to Canada and one to Panama.

“A really unfortunate ending,” said Lopez, who scored Canada’s lone goal in the loss via an acrobatic backheel.

He was involved in five of Canada’s six goals at the CONCACAF competition in Mexico, with a tournament-high three goals plus two assists, and was named to the tournament Best XI. One of the goals, in a 2-2 draw with Honduras, was a highlight-reel free kick from distance.

Lopez joined the youth academy of Pumas UNAM in 2019 when he had just turned 14. He was the top scorer for the club’s under-18 side last year with 10 goals.

Pumas ousted the Whitecaps 2-0 in Vancouver in round-of-32 Leagues Cup play last week before losing 4-0 at the Seattle Sounders on Monday in the round of 16.

Based in Mexico City, Pumas is one of Mexico’s Cuatro Grandes (Big Four) clubs, along with Club America, Cruz Azul and Chivas Guadalajara. Pumas (3-0-1) currently sits second in the Liga MX standings, behind Cruz Azul on goal difference in the early part of the season.

“Having huge support is amazing but obviously there’s huge responsibility and pressure to win titles,” said Lopez, who lives with his mother in Mexico City.

The clock is ticking for Pumas, with its last Mexican title coming in 2011.

Lopez has spent valuable time practising with the Pumas first team, calling it an “amazing opportunity.”

“You can learn some much from them, especially from the defence,” he said. “It’s a great defence.”

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 2, 2024

Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press