PACHUCA, Mexico – After an up-and-down season with club team Pachuca, US national team forward Hérculez Gómez said he would consider returning to MLS after los Tuzos’ participation in this month’s FIFA Club World Cup.
“I’d like to return to MLS,” Gómez told FutbolMLS.com. “Before coming to Pachuca, I had offers in MLS and Europe, so there’s always that feeling of something pending.”
POLL: Which MLS team could use Gómez in 2011?
The forward moved from Kansas City to Mexican side Puebla in 2010 and, in his first tournament in the Primera División, lit up the nets en route to scoring 10 goals for a share of the Golden Boot. His exploits earned him a transfer to Pachuca, where his production was considerably less (one goal) due to being used strictly as a substitute in 14 games (12 in the regular season).
[inline_node:324516]The lack of playing time – Gómez saw just 317 minutes of action in the Apertura 2010 – could play a big part if the Las Vegas-raised veteran decides to part ways with Pachuca.
“Of course I’d like to stay [with Pachuca], but I also have objectives in mind,” he said. “If I can’t fulfill those here, well, soccer goes on.”
Though the World Cup veteran said he has offers from other Mexican clubs, one from MLS might take priority.
“[The league] helped me grow a lot as a person and formed my attitude,” Gómez said. “Thanks to that, I’m the person you know today.”
In the meantime, Gómez is strictly concentrating on performing well in Abu Dhabi, where los Tuzos are currently training ahead of their Club World Cup quarterfinal match against African side TP Mazembe on Dec. 10.
Should Pachuca win, they’ll go on and play Internacional of Brazil. Another victory and the Tuzos could find themselves in the final, possibly against reigning European champions Inter Milan.
“Two world cups in one year, not bad,” joked Gómez. “It’s nice to play these types of tournaments and, hopefully, I’ll play like I did in [2010 World Cup in] South Africa.”
Álvaro Cruz is a writer for Mexican sports daily Récord. He’s based in Pachuca, Mexico, and contributes to FutbolMLS.com.
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