Four Houston Dynamo FC Academy players recently played for the Mexican U-16 Men’s Youth National Team camp at the Copa Alianza. The four players that were invited are Axel Gonzalez, Sebastian Rodriguez, Jose Moreno, Jr. and Jorge “Lalo” Estrada.
“This is another great sign of the direction of the Dynamo Academy,” Houston Dynamo general manager Pat Onstad said. “Having this many players called into national team camps shows that we are making progress towards turning the Dynamo into one of the best youth academies in the country. We look forward to watching Axel, Sebastian, Jose and Lalo continue to develop and represent the Dynamo on the international stage.”
During the tournament, the U-16 Mexican Youth National Team went 2-0-0. In the opening match, El Tri defeated Barca Academy AZ 4-1, with Axel Gonzalez recording a hat trick for the team. In the second match, the team won 4-0 against the Alianza U-17 Select Team. In this match, Houston’s Lalo Estrada recorded a goal and Sebastian Rodriguez wore the captain’s armband in the second half and added an assist.
Estrada, who plays in all positions across the midfield and was born in 2008, joined the Dynamo organization as a U-11 player in 2018 out of Houstonians Futbol Club. Estrada is a native of Houston who comes from an HISD middle school.
Gonzalez is a versatile player that can play either at central midfield or central back. The Houston native joined the Academy from Falcons Soccer SB in 2018 as a part of the under-12 division.
Moreno Jr. plays center back and is the only member in this group of players to have joined the Dynamo Academy in 2020 as part of the U-14 division from Rayados McAllen. Moreno Jr. is from Los Fresnos, Texas and attends school in the Los Fresnos Consolidated Independent School District.
Rodriguez is a central midfielder who has been with the Dynamo since joining the Academy at the U-12 level in 2018. Rodriguez hails from Porter, Texas and attends a school in the New Caney Independent School District. Prior to playing for the Dynamo, Gonzalez played for Inwood Texanitos.
Eighteen players were called into the camp with the U-16 team, which is led by head coach Raul Chabrand. The team is comprised entirely of players born in 2007 and 2008.
