Erick "Cubo" Torres wasn't happy to see Alan Pulido go down with a broken arm on the eve of the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup, but the Houston Dynamo striker says he's ready to go if Mexico need him for the tournament later this month.
Torres was included on the preliminary roster for El Tri in the regional tournament, but did not make the final cut.
"Sad to hear the news," Torres said after Pulido was hurt in Saturday's 2-1 friendly victory over Paraguay. "I hope it’s nothing too serious; he’s a very good friend of mine. At the end of the day, this is soccer. I know I’m on the list and I know I can receive the call-up. If the coaching staff thinks I could be a good element to the team, obviously I will do so proudly and the way Mexico should be represented. The most important thing is that I feel good physically and mentally."
The 24-year-old Torres, who has earned four caps and scored one goal for Mexico, is playing well for Houston right now. He found the back of the net for the 12th time this season in the Dynamo's 3-1 road loss to the Colorado Rapids on Saturday, moving past New York City FC forward David Villa to take sole possession of second place in the MLS Golden Boot race. Nemanja Nikolic of the Chicago Fire is the current with 16.
At least one pundit thinks Torres should get the call from Mexican coach Juan Carlos Osorio.
ESPN's Herculez Gomez tweeted on Saturday night that he thinks Torres is deserving of a call-up for the Gold Cup, given the Dynamo's forward strong run of form and Mexico's dearth of options up top.
Mexico are set to open up their Gold Cup campaign on July 9 against El Salvador.
