This is why Santiago Jimenez preferred to play with the Mexican National Team and not with Messi in Argentina

looking forward to those tournaments mexican football selection Will face in the year 2024 santiago jimenez He has established himself as one of the most promising players due to his qualities. Although his dual nationality could have allowed him to defend the colors of the Argentina shirt, he decided to choose the tricolor for very specific reasons.

As indicated in statements made to the media mexico football playerSaved by the website of Claro Sports, santiago jimenez He rejected the Albiceleste and refused the possibility of sharing the playing field, teachings and locker room. Lionel MessiWho is considered one of the best players in the history of football.

“I’m not lying, I love Messi. He is a beast, he is the best in history, but it is better to play against him (…) I like Leo Messi, I think he is the best player in history, but I was not going to make the decision for Messi, I was going to take it… I’m happy with the decision,” he first announced to the media outlet.

Later, Christian Jiménez’s son “El Chaco” explained in detail his reasons for choosing Mexico. Although he did not deny his Argentinian roots, as his parents, and himself, were born in the South American country, Santiago recognized his attachment to Mexico because it is the place where he grew up most of his life. .

“I feel a mixture. Although I feel Mexican, because I have lived in Mexico all my life since I was two years old, I was born in Argentina and that is a reality. My whole family is Argentinian and no one is going to change their roots,” he declared.

This is not the first time santiago jimenez He talks about his decision to join the Mexican football team instead of Argentina. In that sense, during an interview in the media with former football player Hugo Sánchez espnassured that the turning point came when he was playing for divisions with an age limit of 20 years.

“At one time, in the U20 team, I had the option to go to the Argentine U20 team or to go to the Mexican U20 team and that’s when I had to make the decision. I did one thing that I think was the right thing to do. I said I’m not going to think about what’s best for me or think about the future, I’m just going to decide from my heart,” he said.

Furthermore, he said that his sense of belonging is more tied to Mexico than to the country where he was born. This reason was his main reasoning for deciding to defend the shirt of the country where he made his professional debut.

“When I asked myself this, that’s when I decided on Mexico, because the reality is I feel more Mexican than Argentinian, I’m Argentinian by birth, but I came to Mexico when I was two years old, so my whole life was spent in Mexico and I became Mexican because at the age of two I was already living in Mexico, I got this Don’t even remember when I lived in Argentina,” he declared.

for a longer time, santiago jimenez Continued to hone his footballing qualities, the same qualities he used to end his title drought blue Cross, His talent in the following competitions attracted the attention of various teams in Europe, however he decided to sign with Feyenoord,

currently, gimenez He is one of the leaders of the team based in the city of Rotterdam. Meanwhile, after winning the Gold Cup mexican teamIs poised to become one of the key figures in the 2026 World Cup.