UNTOLD ARSENAL: The stories no one else covers » Blog Archive » Next season’s stars 2: Vela
Carlos Vela – Arsenal’s first Mexican player – is a striker, born in 1989 and signed on Jan 1 2007. He then went on loan first with Salamanca and then in Spain’s first division with Osasuna. By completing his time in Spain, Vela has been able to apply for citizenship, and thus have an EU passport. This makes him eligible to play anywhere within the Union – and hence at Arsenal.
In 2005 Vela was top scorer with five in the FIFA U-17 World Championships: which gave Mexico its first ever international prize. He also represented Mexico at the FIFA U-20 World Cup.
According to that astonishingly reliable source the Daily Mirror (you have to say that with irony otherwise it doesn’t make sense) M. Wenger said, “I like his intelligence and his pace. He scores goals but he can also create them. He’s a special talent and I believe 100 per cent that he will make it at the highest level.”