Arsenal star Marcelo Flores, 18, to snub England and Canada after being called up to Mexico senior squad for first time
ARSENAL prodigy Marcelo Flores has been called up to Mexico’s senior squad for the first time.
The Arsenal U18 midfielder is also eligible to represent England and Canada.
But journalist Charles Watts reports he has flown out to link up with the national team, who face Chile in a friendly next week.
Flores has previously represented Mexico at U16 and U20 level.
He qualifies through his Mexican father, but was born in Canada and granted a British passport earlier this year.
It means he can still change his mind and switch allegiances to one of the latter two, but only before making four senior appearances for Mexico.
He also can’t switch if he plays at a major tournament, and must wait three years to change national side should he earn a senior cap.
Flores has previously spent time at an England U16s camp, although couldn’t represent the Young Lions as he didn’t have an English passport at the time.
The playmaker has been in stunning form in the U18 Premier League for Arsenal this campaign.
He’s scored six goals and provided two assists in just nine games.
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And his performances haven’t gone unnoticed to boss Mikel Arteta, who has promoted him to train with the first team on multiple occasions.
Flores was also named Player of the Tournament at the Revelations Cup this month with Mexico – an U20s tournament – after scoring twice in three games.
It’s that rich vein of form that has seen him called up to the senior side for the first time, to the delight of the Mexican press.
His father Ruben though is insisting that his son’s performances come as no surprise.
He told GOAL: “The press and the TV have been giving him a lot of attention. But I don’t know why they are all so excited about it.
“Marcelo has had lots of good experiences with the U20s. He’s gone to lots of camps in places like Denmark and Spain, and he’s always done well, so this isn’t really anything different.
“Maybe it’s because of the game against Brazil, when he played well and he scored. But Marcelo won’t let this get to him. He just wants to play football. He loves it.”