Former Galaxy forward Javier “Chicharito” Hernández, a three-time World Cup standout for Mexico, will return to the tournament this summer, but in a new role as a studio analyst for Fox Sports. And he approaches his television debut the same way he approached his playing career, with excitement, not fear.
“It's the same as in our sport: if you make a mistake, you can't change it,” he said. “I have always been a person who sees opportunities, who sees the positive. I will try to offer my best point of view in each game, player, tournament.
“I'm going to enjoy this opportunity.”
Hernández said he had other offers to broadcast the World Cup in Spanish, but opted to work in English.
“I'm not going to speak in my first language. And that's something that I think my fellow Mexicans can take inspiration from, right? That I'm not going to my comfort zone,” he said. “I want to make this all an experience for myself. But I can also show people that whatever you have in mind, you can achieve.”
Hernandez, 37, is Mexico's all-time leading scorer with 52 goals, including four in the World Cup. He began and ended his club career with his hometown team, Chivas de Guadalajara, but in between he played for five clubs in Europe and spent four injury-plagued seasons with the Galaxy, scoring 38 goals and making two All-Star teams.
He made his last appearance for the Mexican national team in 2019, but played with and against many of the players still on the team and was chosen for his first World Cup squad by Javier Aguirre, who will return to coach El Tri this summer. Hernández said those friendships will not affect his comments.
“The truth must always be there,” he said. “When someone needs to tell hard truths, you have to say them. I'm going to see how I feel. Maybe I'll end up being the most critical person or the other way around. Maybe Mexico will do great and I don't have to criticize.”
He will join four other former Galaxy players (Cobi Jones, Landon Donovan, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Alexi Lalas) on Fox's broadcast team for the World Cup. Hernández, however, is the only one who has not formally announced his retirement as a player.
“I'll talk about that later,” Hernandez, who played his last game for the club last November, said Wednesday. “I just want to focus on this incredible opportunity.”
