Carlos Vela was 13 years old and amazed the scouts who attended the National Olympics in Ciudad Victoria. There, the Tuzos approached the current LAFC player to try to integrate him into the basic forces of Grupo Pachuca, the conglomerate that also owns León, the rival of the Los Angeles team.
"He had a great left-footed shot and a lot of attitude, because he lost the ball and went back to fight for it. He caught our attention and he wasn't very interested in playing with us, but he still played in a national tournament with Pachuca at the Hidalgo Stadium," says Cesareo Acosta, a scout for the Tuzos at that time, to ESPN Digital.
The Quintana Roo representative striker was unstoppable. The lefty was the fastest player on his team and was tempted by talent scouts from Monterrey, América, and Pachuca. The Tuzos convinced him to participate in a youth tournament. The former Real Sociedad player put on the Pachuca jersey and played some matches with the club, which is affiliated with León. His destiny was elsewhere, at Chivas.
"Vela was in a younger category than the one I was in. I played with Paul Aguilar, Chapo Montes, and Edy Brambila. We played in a national youth tournament, and he played in the final against Cruz Azul in the 1989 or 1988 category. That team was coached by Mario Acosta," recalls Salvador Patiño, former coach in the Pachuca youth system. "He was under observation, but in the end, he didn't want to stay with us," he adds.
The factor that decided Carlos Vela's future was his brother Alejandro, the oldest of the family originally from Cancun, Quintana Roo. Alejandro was in the Chivas youth system and told the LAFC player about the experience he was having at the Guadalajara team. That's what made the striker choose the red and white uniform over the one from the Tuzos when he was 14 years old.
"The fact that his brother was with Chivas had a big influence. He was doing very well, and we believe that's what defined Vela's future," acknowledges Cesareo Acosta, who also discovered Hirving 'Chucky' Lozano.
Carlos Vela's story could have been different. His original destination was Grupo Pachuca, but in the end, he chose Chivas. Today, if he had chosen the Tuzos, he could be facing one of his former teams, León, but that didn't happen.
"The only player I can compare Vela to is Chucky, because like Hirving, they both stood out in their National Olympics. I'm not sure, but I remember that Carlos was the top scorer, he was the best."