COMMERCE CITY, Colo. — Colorado Rapids 2 midfielder Jonny De La Fuente has been named to the Mexican U-17 Youth National Team, the federation announced. He will be joining the group for their upcoming appearance at the Vertex Cup in London, England from September 27 to October 8. Â
The group will play three guaranteed matches in the tournament, starting on October 1 against Argentina. Mexico will then face off against China on October 4 and Tanzania on October 7.Â
De La Fuente, 17, is receiving his fourth call-ups to the youth national team over the past year. Most recently, the midfielder was selected for a training camp in Mexico at the end of August, where he featured in two international friendlies against Colombia. De La Fuente wore the captain’s armband for the side in a 4-1 victory in the first meeting and started the second match.Â
Signing his first professional contract with Rapids 2 at the end of July, the Colorado native quickly carved out a role in the team’s starting lineup. Since then, De La Fuente has earned the captain’s armband four times this season, including in a dominant 4-1 victory over Real Monarchs, where he scored the first professional goal of his career. Throughout the season, De La Fuente has started 12 of his 14 appearances for Rapids 2, logging 1,070 minutes while continuing to establish himself as a key contributor for the second team.
