Santiago Giménez revealed he tried to give his boyhood club Cruz Azul a boost in their ambitious attempt to sign former AC Milan striker Luka Jović.
News of Cruz Azul's desire to land the 27-year-old Serbian forward have stolen Liga MX headlines in recent weeks. La Máquina are reportedly only details away from making Jović their new striker, in a move that's been in the works since the tail-end of last season.
Cruz Azul's sporting director Ivan Alonso has spearheaded the attempted transfer. Recently, Giménez revealed that Jović spoke to him about Cruz Azul's efforts to convince him to make the move to Liga MX.
“Last season, towards the end of April, Luka (Jović) showed me a text and it was from Ivan Alonso,” Gimenez said. “He [Alonso] texted him and he talked to him every day, telling him they wanted to bring him to Mexico.”
“They [Cruz Azul] sent him [Jović] videos of what Cruz Azul are, so he came up to me a lot during training and asked me about it. You can probably guess what I told him. I told him it's a wonderful club, that that's where I grew up and that if he makes the decision to go to Cruz Azul he would enjoy it a lot, because it's a family.”
Giménez is a Cruz Azul academy graduate who scored 21 goals in 107 appearances for the club. He was part of La Máquina's side that ended a 23-year Liga MX title drought in 2021, before moving to Feyenoord a year later to begin his career in Europe.
Cruz Azul haven't won a league title since, but enter the Apertura 2025 as one of the favorites to lift the trophy. Signing the former Real Madrid striker would only strengthen their chances and Gimenez previewed what the Cruz Azul could expect from Jović.
“Luka [Jović] is a player that if you give him the ball he won't lose it. He doesn't give away the ball and inside the area he's a 'killer.' I know Cruz Azul have some really good strikers, but if Luka joins, I think there'll be an internal competition that will make everyone grow.”
The Mexico international has repeatedly shown love to his boyhood club. Now, he's trying his best to help Cruz Azul land arguably the biggest transfer of the summer in Liga MX.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Santiago Gimenez ‘Pitches’ Liga MX Club to Former AC Milan Striker.
