Carlos Vela Returns To Tricolor With Lessons Learned

Carlos Vela spent quite a bit of time away from Mexico. After playing in the World Cup and some post-World Cup friendlies, Vela was suspended from the Mexican national team for six months after he and teammate Efrain Juarez violated some team rules.

Along with Juarez, Vela returned to El Tri this week and is training with the national team in California ahead of Saturday’s friendly against Paraguay.

Vela said his time away from El Tri was not entirely a lost cause.

“I learned a lot of things,” Vela told reporters. “Every stage you go through always leaves some positives, leaves lessons. So you just have to take away all of the positives from the stage you passed through, and look ahead, focusing on the future and how to do things the best way possible.”

While he was suspended, Mexico manager Jose Manuel De La Torre took over and El Tri played one game – a 2-0 victory over Bosnia. Now that he’s been brought back into the mix, Vela said he wants to keep from falling behind.

“I’m happy to begin a new era,” he said. “I hope things go well and can come out ahead.”

Mexico have not undergone many drastic changes after the World Cup, and as El Tri train for the Gold Cup the squad’s consistency will help bring success.

“The same base of players has been kept together,” Vela said. “We’re working hard to get out ahead. Obviously there is a lot of desire here to change the past, to go a better way, to win titles and hopefully we can accomplish that.”

Defending their Gold Cup title is important, Vela said, but every tournament is imperative for El Tri.

“Every tournament the national team plays is important, more so if you know it carries a trip to the Confederations Cup with it,” he said. “Hopefully we can play well and win it.”