The historic captain of Mexico, Rafa Marquez, is the only player of the national team that trains towards Russia 2018 wearing a jersey without commercial sponsors; a unique circumstance that coincides with the investigation being conducted by US authorities for his alleged links to drug trafficking.
The local press released images of the "Tri" training on Thursday, in which the players are seen dressed in black and wearing logos of different advertising companies. Except for Marquez, which aroused suspicions.
"In order to have Rafa Marquez 100% focused on sports, and knowing the personal issue he is going through (which like all of you, we hope will be resolved in his favor as soon as possible) we have consulted different experts and decided to take actions that, in our understanding, do not harm Rafa Marquez or the Mexican Football Federation," the Mexican federation announced in a press release on Friday.
In August 2017, the US Department of the Treasury announced that it was investigating nine companies owned by Marquez - including a soccer school, a sports club, and a foundation - for alleged links to drug trafficking.
Marquez, for years captain of Mexico and star of Barcelona in Spain and Monaco in France, stayed away from football for 80 days while his lawyers determined his legal situation.
Finally, the 39-year-old veteran returned to the field with the Mexican club Atlas, with whom he bid farewell in the Clausura-2018 tournament, which concludes this week. Marquez was included in the preliminary list of 28 players of the Mexican national team heading to Russia 2018 last Wednesday. Colombian coach, Juan Carlos Osorio, positioned him as a midfielder.