Football
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Mexico excludes Alan Pulido due to Tigres legal dispute

Mexico head coach Juan Carlos Osorio confirmed on Wednesday that striker Alan Pulido wasn't included in El Tri's 40-man preliminary Copa America squad because of his ongoing legal dispute with Liga MX club Tigres.

Pulido has found form and minutes with club side Olympiakos late in the season, scoring five goals in eight games in 2016 and sparking calls for the 2014 World Cup veteran to once again be considered for the national team.

"We think he has the characteristics to compete for a spot upfront, but we understand that the dispute has not been resolved and we prefer to wait," said Osorio in a news conference in Mexico City on Wednesday. "We hope Alan's situation is resolved as soon as possible to be able to consider him [for selection]."

Osorio had said back in January that there was no black list when asked about Pulido.

The 25-year-old striker last played for Tigres on April 26, 2014 and argued he was a free agent after the World Cup of the same year, indicating he was free to sign for a club in Europe. Tigres had other ideas and were adamant Pulido had put pen to paper on a contract extension until the summer of 2016.

The Mexican federation ruled in favor of the Liga MX club in December 2014 and Pulido then took his case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which also ruled against him, despite the striker already having announced he had signed for Greek side Levadiakos.

The 24-year-old was sidelined for several months while the status of his International Transfer Certificate was adjudicated. But Pulido was given a provisional ITC by FIFA in February 2015 that allowed him to play for Levadiakos and then move onto current Greek champions Olympiakos last summer.

Pulido was heavily linked with a loan deal to Colorado Rapids last January, but an ESPN report suggested that MLS was "treading lightly" with regard to the legal side of the potential move.

One player who is back in the national team after a lengthy absence is Chivas midfielder Carlos Pena, who was also part of the World Cup 2014 squad.

"Gullit" Pena had failed to recapture the form that catapulted him to Brazil 2014, but is starring for high-flying Chivas at present and appears to have got off-field problems in order.

"It comforts me to know that for the last call-up against Canada he was the first I called to tell him he wouldn't be called up and that our desire was that he'd put his private life to one side and concentrate on giving everything to being to the next squad," explained Osorio. "He took onboard our words and suggestions."

Finally, Osorio also talked about Carlos Vela, who ruled himself out of national team contention ahead of the 2014 World Cup and has had disciplinary problems of late at Real Sociedad.

"We all know what he's like," said Osorio. "We believe the best and healthiest thing to do is let him play, analyze at the end of the season and talk to him if necessary."

Mexico's final 23-player squad for the Copa America is set to be announced on May 20, with El Tri kicking off its tournament on June 5 against Uruguay in Phoenix.

Osorio said he thinks Mexico is fielding a highly competitive team that has a good chance at the title.

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