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Pachuca winger Hirving Lozano may not be much beyond his teenage years, but he is already a marked man. In Pachuca's 0-0 draw against Cruz Azul last Saturday in Liga MX action, opposition players swarmed when Lozano got the ball, doubling and tripling up on the 20-year-old and stifling him by any means possible. Lozano was the most fouled player on the pitch. It's a reality that "Chucky" -- a nickname received due to his penchant for jumping out from under beds to surprise roommates while on the road -- will have to get used to. After Lozano burst onto the international scene with the Mexican national team in games earlier this year against Senegal and Canada, the Mexico City native will be receiving special attention wherever he goes. But it isn't just opposition defenders who have Lozano in their sights. Pachuca's president Jesus Martinez admitted last week that Manchester United's chief scout had attended the team's games earlier this year in Veracruz, Torreon and Guadalajara and had been particularly impressed with Lozano, above other Tuzos starlets Rodolfo Pizarro and Erick Gutierrez. The fact that United are monitoring Lozano, Pizarro and Gutierrez should be no surprise. Pachuca sporting director Marco Garces has an established history with United, alerting the Premier League club's chief scout, Jim Lawlor, to then-Chivas striker Javier "Chicharito" Hernandez when Garces was studying in Liverpool. Since then, Garces has kept in contact and told ESPNFC late last year that he regularly visits England. But the Old Trafford outfit are unlikely to be the only team keeping tabs on Lozano, or Gutierrez and Pizarro. There was a report about interest from Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool, and PSV, Porto, Real Sociedad and Schalke have all been mentioned. Again, it should be no surprise for the young winger. The speedy Lozano features mainly on the left wing for Pachuca, cutting in onto his stronger right foot. But for Mexico, Lozano impressed on the right in the World Cup qualifying match against Canada in Vancouver last month and immediately announced himself on the international stage with a goal of some quality. There is a directness about Lozano's play, bags of velocity and a maturity beyond his years in how he isn't always looking to burst past opponents. If there is no immediate option, Lozano will play the ball inside and bide his time. The real improvement in Lozano over the last six months has been in the goal department. In a side like Pachuca, playing a 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1 formation, the wingers need to contribute with their share of goals and Lozano has six in his last 12 matches and 10 in his last 29. Lozano's confidence in front of goal has obviously grown and the fact he has already played 80 first division matches at his age is testament to just how highly the Pachuca hierarchy rate his talent. Mexico coach Juan Carlos Osorio is already sold on the player, who he chose in his last squad ahead of Real Sociedad's Carlos Vela. "His speed and ability to go past [opponents] will take him far," said the Colombian last month. "Lozano has a great desire to learn with the national team." "His strength is that he is a very low key, low-profile, very down to earth [person] and I think will go very far," added Osorio. "Not only is he a very good player with the potential to be an outstanding player, he is also a very good human being." In all likelihood, Lozano will be at both the Copa America Centenario and the Olympic Games this summer, offering the youngster a huge opportunity to impress potential club suitors. Pachuca's owners have put lots of groundwork into nurturing the talented Lozano and may well be in for a windfall when he does eventually move to Europe. That jump is likely to be sooner rather than later if "Chucky" continues as he has so far in 2016.
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