Hirving Lozano

At 28 years old, Hirving Lozano has this physical status:

Hirving Rodrigo Lozano Bahena (born 30 July 1995) is a Mexican professional footballer who plays as a winger for Italian club Napoli and the Mexico national football team.

He is popularly known by his nickname Chucky.Lozano began his career with Pachuca, winning the 2016 Clausura and the 2016–17 CONCACAF Champions League, playing in 152 games and scoring 44 goals for the team.

In June 2017, he signed for Dutch side PSV Eindhoven and won the Eredivisie in his first season in the Netherlands, and also finished as the team’s top scorer.

In 2019, Lozano signed for Napoli for a reported €42 million, making him the most expensive Mexican player of all time.Participating with various youth teams, Lozano won the 2015 CONCACAF U-20 Championship and played at the 2016 Summer Olympics.

He made his senior international debut in February 2016 and represented the nation at the Copa America Centenario, 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup, and 2018 FIFA World Cup.

Personal life

Lozano has a younger brother named Bryan Mauricio who is also a footballer, playing as a midfielder for Club Universidad Nacional.

Lozano married his girlfriend Ana Obregón in 2014, whom he met while playing for Pachuca. The pair have two children; a daughter born in 2014, and a son born in 2017.

Lozano is popularly known by his nick name Chucky, after the doll of the Child's Play horror film series. He reportedly got the moniker during his youth career, as he used to hide under team-mates' beds and scare them.

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Club career

Lozano, an 11-year-old boy, was born in Mexico City and attended the C.F. youth academy. Pachuca was a tourist in 2006. After playing in the lower leagues, he was promoted to the first team to replace Gabriel Caballero. Lozano made his Liga MX debut against Club América on February 8, 2014, when he scored five minutes after his substitution in the Estadio Azteca's 1–0 victory. Lozano finished runner-up with Pachuca in his first tournament with the Clausura 2014, winning the third leg final over sibling club León in his first appearance. In the 2–1 victory over León on August 30, he scored his first brace.

Lozano scored an equalizer seven minutes after Dorados de Sinaloa scored first in a league match where Pachuca advanced to victory 2–1. Lozano scored the first and only goal of the match against Toluca on the first minute of the game, placing them first on the general table on February 27, 2016. In Pachuca's 6–0 victory over Veracruz on March 19, Lozano scored his first hat-trick. Lozano scored two goals on the semifinal legs of the Clausura championship against León, leading his team to a 3–2 aggregate victory. Pachuca beat Montere 2–1 on aggregate in the Clausura tournament's finals. He was later selected in the tournament's Best XI.

Lozano scored a brace and contributed to an assist in his first league match against León, winning 5–1. He scored four goals in Pachuca's 11–0 victory over Police United on September 13, putting the record for the largest win in the tournament's history. For his appearance, he was named CONCACAF Champions League Player of the Week. Lozano finished the Apertura tournament as the highest-scoring Mexican player with 7 goals, and was again included in the Best XI.

In Pachuca's 4–2 victory, he scored a hat-trick against León on the first matchday of the Clausura 2017. Lozano scored twice in the last ten minutes of the match against FC Dallas in April, helping lead Pachuca to a 3–1 victory (4–3 on aggregate) to advance to the finals. Pachuca continued winning the CONCACAF Champions League by beating fellow Mexican side Tigres UANL, with Lozano winning the Golden Boot as the competition's top scorer with 8 goals and the Best Young Player Award being given.

Following a lengthy transfer process that saw Lozano linked to a number of European clubs, including Manchester United, Manchester City, Benfica, and Ajax, it was announced that Dutch club PSV Eindhoven had won the signing of Lozano on a six-year deal on June 19th. In order to guarantee the transfer, he temporarily left the Mexican national team, which was in Russia for the Confederations Cup. He was the fifth Mexican player to join PSV.

Lozano made his competitive debut against Croatia's Osijek in the Europa League qualifiers, playing in both legs as they failed to qualify for the group stage due to a 2–0 aggregate score. Lozano scored against AZ Alkmaar on August 12th on his Eivisie debut with PSV. He started and played 84 minutes in his team's 3–2 win, winning a standing ovation from the home crowds as he came home. In PSV's 4–0 victory over NAC Breda a week later, he scored once more and provided an assist. Lozano scored again in PSV's 2–0 victory over Roda JC this week, becoming the first player to score in his first three games with PSV, and being named Economist Player of the Month for the month of August. In a 2–0 loss to SC Heerenveen on September 10, Lozano received his first red card for PSV.

Lozano received his second red card of the season on February 17th, this time against Heerenveen in a league match against Heerenveen for making contact with defender Lucas Woudenberg's face. He was issued a three-match suspension that was later upheld by the KNVB's administrative commission after a failed appeal by PSV. Lozano made his return on March 18th by scoring his second goal in PSV's 3–0 victory over VVV Venlo, his second goal of the season.

Following their 3–0 victory over rivals Ajax on April 15, Lozano took the Economy Cup with PSV. With 17 league goals and 11 assists, he finished the season as the team's top scorer in the league.

In PSV's first match of the 2018–19 season against Feyenoord, Lozano was a second-half replacement. Lozano converted one at full time and into penalties but lost on a 6–5 loss. Lozano scored in PSV's 2018-19 Economies opener against FC Utrecht on August 11th, scoring his third goal in the team's 4–0 victory. He scored again this week in a 2–1 victory over Fortuna Sittard. Lozano made his UEFA Champions League debut against BATE on 3 days later; he scored PSV's second goal in their 3–2 victory in the first round of the playoff qualifying round.

In a 7–0 thrashing, he would score two goals against ADO, with former Pachuca teammate Érick Gutiérrez contributing the assistance for the second goal three minutes after being dropped in. He made his UEFA Champions League group stage debut against Barcelona three days later, losing 4–0 to Barcelona. His success earned him to be named in the league's best XI for September. On October 6th, Lozano scored his first and last goal in PSV's 4–0 victory against VVV, scoring the first and final goal. He was directly involved in half of PSV's goals in their 6–0 victory over FC Emmen on October 20th, contributing two assists and one goal. PSV drew 2–2 with Tottenham Hotspur on Thursday, four days later, he scored his first goal in the Champions League group stage, while PSV drew 2–2 with Tottenham Hotspur, also delivering Hugo Lloris out with a red card for an outside-of-the-box violation. In PSV's 3–0 win over SC Heerenveen, Lozano will score twice and contribute an assist. In the final group stage match of the Champions League, Lozano scored in PSV's 1–1 draw with Inter Milan on December 11th. He was later named in the Champions League breakthrough team of 2018.

Lozano was stretchered off the field after a challenge from Freek Heerkens on 25 April 25, 2019 during a match against Willem II. The player was initially thought to have sustained critical ligament injury and was enduring a lengthy spell on the sidelines, but it was eventually dismissed out. Lozano will miss the remainder of the season, according to a club statement.

Lozano joined Italian club Napoli on August 23rd. Lozano Napoli's most expensive signing at the time, as well as the highest transfer fee paid to a Mexican player, and the most money received by PSV Eindhoven for a player, apparently signed a five-year contract with a transfer fee of US$46.5 million (€42 million). Lozano made his Serie A debut against Juventus in Turin, scoring his team's second goal in a 4-3 loss.

Gennaro Gattuso was appointed as the next boss after Carlo Ancelotti's mediocre results, with Lozano receiving little to no playing time. He was asked to leave training by Gattuso on June 16, 2020, for a lack of motivation. He appeared as an unused substitute in Napoli's Coppa Italia win over Juventus, beating them 4–2 in a penalty shoot-out after a scoreless draw, making him the first Mexican to win a title with an Italian club. Lozano's last games of his first season with Napoli saw him gain more playing time, winning 26 league matches and netting 4 goals.

Napoli defeated Parma in the first league match of the 2020-2021 season, where Lozano was in the starting line-up in the 2–0 victory. Lozano scored his first brace for the club against Genoa on Monday, defeating the club 6–0. He scored his second brace against Atalanta in a 4–1 victory the next month. He scored his first Europa League goal in a group stage match against Croatian side Rijeka on November 26, winning a 2–0 home victory. Following his 2–1 victory over Sampdoria, in which he scored and provided an assist, sports newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport praised Lozano's results, highlighting his improved form compared to that of his first season with Napoli.

He scored his team's only goal in a 3–1 loss to Hellas Verona, which was clocked at 8.95 seconds from the start of the game, making it the third-fastest goal in the Serie A, the club's fastest goal, and Lozano's personal record. He scored his 100th goal in all competitions four days later against Spezia. He scored 11 goals in his second season with 32 league appearances, finishing his second season as the club's second highest scorer.

In a 4–0 victory over Udinese at the Stadio Friuli on September 20, Lozano scored his first goal of the season. It was his 60th goal in Europe, defeating Nery Castillo as the fifth-highest scoring Mexican in Europe. Lozano sustained a head injury after colliding with Wilfred Ndidi's knee in the 40th minute when being stretchered off the field on Sunday. In the 1–0 loss to A.C. Milan, he returned to action four days later as a starter. Lozano had tested positive for COVID-19 on January 6, 2022, Napoli announced that he had tested positive for COVID-19.

Lozano made his return as a 63rd-minute substitute in the Coppa Italia round of 16 matches against Fiorentina on January 13th, only to be dismissed after twenty minutes after a late challenge on Nicolás González. In Napoli's 2–0 league victory over Bologna, he scored his first brace of the season.

International career

Lozano was called up by Sergio Almaguer in December 2014 to compete with the CONCACAF U-20 Championships under 20 teams. He scored a brace and four assists in Mexico's 9-1 victory, putting them first in their group. He went on to score three more goals and had another assist in the tournament. Mexico advanced to the tournament after defeating Panama in a penalty shoot-out 4–2 following a 1–1 draw, gaining entry to the 2015 FIFA U-20 World Cup in New Zealand. He was named the Golden Boot champion alongside United States midfielder Romain Gall; Lozano was also voted in the tournament's Best XI after finishing with five goals.

Lozano was then invited to the U-20 World Cup in May 2015, where he would appear in all three group stage matches. Mexico will finish last in the group.

Lozano was selected by coach Ral Gutiérrez to compete in the CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying Championship on September 18, 2015. In the 2–0 semi-final victory over Canada, he scored Mexico's second goal. Mexico ultimately won the tournament after defeating Honduras 2–0 in the final, with Lozano receiving the tournament's Golden Ball as well as being included in the tournament's Best XI.

Lozano was named in the 18-man squad that would compete in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on July 7th. Lozano was suspended in stoppage time after shooting a Korean player in Mexico's third group stage match against South Korea on August 10th. Mexico lost the match 1–0, finishing third in their group and being thus barred from the tournament.

Lozano was included in the provisional roster for the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup by Miguel Herrera but was removed from the final list, retaining the Provisional List in case someone else is injured. Lozano's first call-up to the senior national team was granted in February 2016, under new coach Juan Carlos Osorio. Lozano earned his first cap as a starter in the friendly against Senegal on February 10th, and he assisted fellow Pachuca teammate Rodolfo Pizarro in the second goal as Mexico defeated Mexico 2–0. Lozano scored his first international goal in the 39th minute of the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Canada, which Mexico won 3–0. He was selected in Mexico's 23-man squad to compete in the Copa América Centenario. He appeared in all tournament matches, culminating in a quarter-final appearance.

Lozano was selected in Mexico's 23-man squad for the FIFA Confederations Cup in Russia on June 8, 2017. Lozano scored the second goal in their second group stage match against the hosts after chasing a long clearance from Héctor Herrera and then smashing goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev to the ball, allowing Lozano to nip in and direct the ball into the open net. His success earned him to be named man of the match.

Lozano scored the only goal in the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying match against Panama on September 1, 2017, thus guaranteeing Mexico's qualification to the tournament. He scored his first brace with the national team in a 3–3 draw against Belgium on November 10th, scoring off a lobbed ball from Héctor Herrera on the 56th minute and scoring off a volley following a bounce off goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois two minutes later.

Lozano was selected in Mexico's 23-man squad for the World Cup on June 4, 2018. He scored his lone goal in the first group match over defending champions Germany, where he was later named FIFA Man of the Match. Lozano aided Javier Hernández in scoring the second goal in Mexico's second match against South Korea in their 2–1 victory. In the last group match against Sweden and in the round-of-16 match against Brazil, Lozano began.

Lozano was drafted in coach Gerardo Martino's preliminary squad for the 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup, but he was eventually barred from the tournament after not fully recovered from a knee injury while playing with PSV.

Lozano suffered a head injury when he crashed into Trinidad and Tobago goalkeeper Marvin Phillips, who broke Lozano on the head, causing Lozano to have an eye gash and a neck injury, as well as a cervical collar on the way to the hospital. Lozano will miss out the remainder of the 2021 Gold Cup, and the rest of the 2021 Gold Cup will be missed out by around 4–6 weeks, according to the team.

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