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Diego Lainez Wiki Bio
Mexican professional soccer player Diego Lainez Leyva was born in Villahermosa, Tabasco, Mexico, on 9 June 2000, making Gemini his zodiac sign. He’s today playing for the Tigres UANL of Liga MX, while he’s also in Mexico’s national team.
Education and early career
Diego and his brother Mauro Jr. were raised in Villahermosa by their father Mauro Lainez Sr. and mother Mary del Carmen Leyva de la O; Diego rarely speaks about his family in public, and thus not many details about them have been disclosed, however, it’s known that his brother’s today also a professional soccer player, and is currently playing for FC Juarez of Liga MX.
Diego became passionate about soccer at a very early age, and was four when his parents had him join a local soccer club. He and his brother were together scouted by Angel Gonzalez not long after Diego enrolled at local high school, and he joined Club de Futbol América, while Mauro joined Club de Futbol Pachuca.
Diego’s debut with his team in the COPA MX group stage was on 1 March 2017, when América faced Santos Laguna; he made his league debut three days later, when América faced Leon. Diego thus became the youngest player to compete in the league, as he was only 16 years old; he started his first game on 19 March, when Gerson Torres was made ineligible to play because of a line-up error.
Diego’s first two goals for América were in a game against his brother’s Club de Futbol Pachuca on 4 August 2018. He suffered a sprained ankle on 18 September, and was forced to miss four weeks of training, returning on 20 October to score a goal in a win against Club Tijuana Xoloitzcuintles de Caliente.
Diego matriculated in 2018, and then didn’t attend college.
Further career
Diego signed a five-year $14 million contract with Real Betis of La Liga on 10 January 2019, thus becoming the youngest player to move from Liga MX, while he was also the second most expensive Mexican player to be signed by a European club. Diego was given jersey #22 and made his debut on 20 January 2019, when Betis defeated Girona, entering the game at the 81-minute mark. He was made a starter a week later, and played 75 minutes in a loss against Athletic de Bilbao. Diego became the youngest Mexican player to score in the UEFA Europa League on 14 February, when he scored in injury time against Stade Rennais Football Club.
On 19 December 2019, Diego scored from a free kick in a win against Copa del Rey.
He was loaned to Braga of Primeira Liga on 29 July 2022, and then to Tigres UANL on 30 January 2023.
National team
Diego played in the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup, and scored two goals in a game against England on 14 September 2017, but Mexico still lost 3-2. He then played in the 2018 CONCACAF U-20 Championship, the 2018 Central American and Caribbean Games, and the 2018 Toulon Tournament; Diego was then selected to compete in the U-20 World Cup in Poland in April 2019.
He wasn’t allowed to compete in the 2020 CONCACAF Men’s Olympic Qualifying Championship, but was invited to play soccer at the 2020 Summer Olympics, winning bronze for Mexico’s Olympic team.
Diego’s first goal as a senior for Mexico’s national team was in a game against Algeria on 13 October 2020, and on 6 June 2021, he scored a goal in a game against the USA, which Mexico lost 3-2.
Just passing by to check… 👀
Who has our new jersey already? 💚📸🤳#ElOrigenQueNosUne | #HechoDeLosMexicanos pic.twitter.com/iMX89PbXbF
— Mexican National Team (@miseleccionmxEN) July 13, 2022
Diego’s style of play
Many soccer magazines have written about Diego, referring to him as ‘one of the best young players in the world’. A number of successful players have spoken about the maturity which Diego shows in his games, and they’ve praised his skills of orchestrating attacks with and for his teammates; they’ve also praised his passing and crossing skills, and have stated that he’s good in defense, as well.
He ended his 2017-2018 season with over 65 percent of successful dribbles.
Diego’s cited Argentinian professional soccer player Lionel Andres ‘Leo’ Messi as his role model.
Love life and girlfriend
Diego shies away from sharing the details of his love life with the public, but his fans have been able to find out that he’s today in a relationship with Spanish non-celebrity girl Blanca Mauri.
The two met in Seville, Spain while Diego was playing for Betis, but the date on when they began dating hasn’t been disclosed; Blanca’s currently attending college, from which she should be graduating in 2024. The two have been spotted spending time together on several occasions, but neither has opened up about them dating.
Before Blanca, Diego was in a relationship with Laura Illanes, a professional tennis player who’s followed by close to 40,000 people on Instagram.
Diego seems to be dating Blanca Mauri as of June 2023, hasn’t married and doesn’t have children.
Interesting facts and hobbies
Diego’s highly popular on Instagram and more than 1.8 million people are following him on the network today, while he’s uploaded 420 pictures and videos; most of his content is in one way or the other related to soccer.
He’s passionate about travelling and has already been to a number of US states and European countries.
Diego’s a dog-lover, and has a pet dog which he enjoys featuring in his Instagram pictures.
He’s very close to his mother, and has uploaded a number of pictures of them spending time together onto his Instagram account.
Diego’s a huge fan of Hollywood; his favorite actors are Johnny Depp and Tom Cruise, and some of his favorite movies include “Top Gun: Maverick”, “A Few Good Men” and the franchise “Pirates of the Caribbean”.
Height, eyes and wealth
Diego’s age is 23. He has brown eyes and black hair, is 5ft 6ins (1.68m) tall and weighs around 145lbs (65kgs).
Diego’s net worth’s been estimated at over $3 million, as of June 2023.
