Hirving ‘Chucky’ Lozano made his MLS debut back in February with San Diego FC in a move that shocked many. Eight months later and San Diego have clinched a spot in the playoffs in their inaugural season
even going as far as topping the Western Conference. His first season has not been the explosive season many thought it would be due to injuries and in his first MLS playoff run the Mexican international might not be available due to an internal situation.
‘Chucky’ Lozano started his career with Pachuca where he made his debut in 2014 and went on to win a title with his boyhood club. His play grabbed the attention of European clubs and in 2017 he signed with Eredivisie side PSV. He played two seasons and won a league title before he left to Serie A to play with Napoli in 2019. The second half of his first season in Italy was full of tension as a new head coach was put in place after his arrival and the new coach was not too fond of the Mexican in the beginning. The following seasons went much smoother for the player and Lozano went on to win a Coppa Italia Cup and Serie A title. After the 2023 season where the club won the league title, Lozano made his way back to PSV where his European career started. He helped the team win a league title before his eventual departure.
The announcement that Lozano was leaving Europe to head to the United States to play in the MLS was confusing to many. He is only 30 years old and has many years left to play at a top level but instead he decided to head to the United States to play in a league referred to as a “retirement league.” He made his debut in late February and then injured his hamstring a week later where he missed three games. After his return from injury he quickly regained his form which earned him a call-up to the Mexican National Team right before the Gold Cup. His last few years with the National Team had been up and down so it was the best news the winger received. Unfortunately, the news was short-lived as Lozano was forced to withdraw from the camp as he suffered another hamstring injury to his left leg.
The injury left him sidelined for a few weeks before he made his return at the end of June. He returned at the perfect time since San Diego had been hunting for first place in the Western Conference and a playoff spot. The Mexican helped the team not only win a playoff spot but also secure first place in the Western Conference in their inaugural season. Due to injuries Lozano has only played in 27 matches, starting 22 of them, where he has scored nine goals and recorded eight assists. Everything seemed to be falling into place for the Mexican international but now, it’s all in doubt.
Earlier today it was announced by Tom Bogert of The Athletic, that Lozano’s participation in San Diego’s first ever playoff game is in doubt due to an internal situation. The situation in question occurred earlier this month. On October 4, San Diego played the Houston Dynamo where the winger was subbed off at halftime. Lozano did not take this decision well and this led to a verbal altercation. After the international break, the Mexican player was absent from their win against Portland this past week, he wasn’t even on the matchday roster, and head coach Mikey Varas said “we had a situation we’re dealing with internally,” as the only clarification for the notable absence. Now according to this new report, Lozano “needs to prove how committed he is to the locker room in order to be available to play in the playoffs.”
While to some this behavior from ‘Chucky’ is new and surprising, it isn’t to people who have followed the Mexican’s career. Back in 2019 when he joined Napoli, the winger joined a positive situation that went sideways quickly after Carlo Ancelotti was sacked due to poor results. The next coach, Gennaro Gattuso, was not a big fan of the player and would give him little to no playing time. Everything came to a head one day at practice when reports surfaced that the Mexican player was asked to leave practice after he was accused of not putting in enough effort. In response to reports, Guttuso said, “anyone who is tired, who doesn’t feel like it, as far as I am concerned, he can just stay in the locker room and miss a day of training.” As a result Lozano did not appear in the Coppa Italia final, which Napoli won. It was near the end of the season that Lozano finally received consistent minutes.
This report is just sad for a player who had once been hailed to be the future of the Mexican National Team. He was playing in Europe, in the Champions League and winning trophies yet his behavior has made a couple of headlines. As a player it is frustrating to be subbed out but that isn’t a justifiable excuse to get into any kind of altercations with the club. Now he might miss San Diego’s playoff run all because of his bad attitude.
