Jorge Torres Nilo announces his retirement from football

Veteran Mexican defender, Jorge Torres Nilo has decided to end his career in football. The left back nicknamed “Pechu” came through the youth system of Atlas, but the majority of his career happened with Tigres, where he won five Liga MX titles and had his most successful spell. He eventually moved on to Toluca, where he called it quits this season. Torres Nilo had a notable spell with the Mexican National Team as well, where he won two Gold Cups and went to the 2010 World Cup.

Jorge Torres Nilo came through the Atlas youth system at a time when they were producing a lot of good players. Being part of the team that qualified to the 2005 U17 World Cup (although not making it to the tournament where Mexico won their first U17 World Cup title), he had already gained some fame, and was deemed good enough to make the first team in February 2006. His most important moment with Atlas came in the 2008 Copa Libertadores, where Atlas won their group against two very strong teams in Boca Juniors and Colo Colo, with the Chilean side not making it out of the group stage. Atlas then faced Lanus in the Round of 16, defeating them before facing Boca Juniors in the Quarterfinals. There they had one of the top moments of Torres Nilo’s career, when they got a 2-2 tie in Buenos Aires in the first leg that ended with a goal from Torres Nilo. Unfortunately for them they lost 3-0 in the return leg, but Torres Nilo’s goal was still a sweet memory for the team.

After the 2010 World Cup, Torres Nilo joined Tigres, where he had some of the best moments in his club career. With Tigres, Torres Nilo was part of the Apertura 2011 team that won Tigres’ first league title since 1982. That title started and incredible run for Tigres, who were a contender every season thereafter, with Torres Nilo being a starter for most of those times. Torres Nilo was part of the Tigres team that went to the 2015 Copa Libertadores. The team won their group, which had River Plate finishing second (and only qualifying because of Tigres getting a win against Juan Aurich in their final match). They then went to the Round of 16 and defeated Universitario de Sucre, and then got past Emelec in the Quarterfinals. In the Semifinals, with newly arrived French striker Andre-Pierre Gignac, they defeated Internacional de Porto Alegre, becoming only the third (and as of this writing, the last) Liga MX team to play in the Copa Libertadores Final. Unfortunately in a situation similar to what happened in 2008, Tigres faced River Plate in the final and lost 3-0 on the aggregate.

Still Torres Nilo and Tigres went back to Liga MX and win the Apertura 2015 title against UNAM Pumas. Torres Nilo was also a key part of the Tigres team who won the Liga MX title in the Apertura 2016 by defeating Club America even with Torres Nilo getting red carded in that final game. Torres Nilo was also part of the Tigres teams that won the Apertura 2017 and Clausura 2019 titles, coming during his best span with the club, before moving on to Toluca for the Clausura 2021. With Toluca he had some key matches and was a key part of the team that went to the final of the 2022 Apertura, including getting a goal in the second leg of the semifinals. Still as time continued, he got less and less playing time and has decided to bring his club career to an end.

During this time, Torres Nilo also had some key moments with the Mexican National Team. After making his debut in 2008, Torres Nilo had a good spell that showed he was good enough to make it to the 2010 World Cup, his only appearance at the tournament. Although he didn’t play in a single match in South Africa, he was still good enough to make the roster. In 2011, he was part of the team and scored his only national team goal, the only goal for Mexico in a 2011 friendly against Ecuador. The match was overshadowed by the 2011 Champions League final played earlier that same day, which famously had Javier Hernandez starting with Manchester United, as they lost 3-1 against Barcelona.

Torres Nilo was also part of the team that won the 2011 Gold Cup, in which he had probably his most important game with the national team. In the 2011 final, Carlos Salcido had to come out injured in the 28th minut,e with Mexico already trailing against their main rival United States by a 2-0 score. Torres Nilo played a great match and Mexico came back to win the final with a 4-2 score. Torres Nilo was a regular with the National Team up until after the awful tenure of Jose Manuel de la Torre. After Miguel Herrera became the coach, Torres Nilo was left out of the 2014 World Cup but returned for the 2015 Gold Cup, where he would win his second Gold Cup title. Torres Nilo continued with the senior team under coach Juan Carlos Osorio and was part of the 2016 Copa America which ended in the disastrous 7-0 quarterfinal loss against Chile. Torres Nilo was then one of the three overage players in the Mexican National Team that played the 2016 Olympics, but Mexico had a terrible performance and was eliminated in the group stage. Torres Nilo then returned to the national team for the final games of the semifinal stage of the 2018 World Cup Qualifiers, but committed a terrible handball that lead to a penalty for El Salvador. Mexico was able to bounce back and get a 3-1 win in El Salvador, but that was the last time Torres Nilo was called up to the national team.

Torres Nilo was a solid Liga MX defender that should be considered one of the historic players for Tigres. He had a solid national team career culminating in a trip to the World Cup, even if he didn’t play. Overall he leaves a legacy of being a rock-solid defender that made his mark in Mexican football, and should be remembered fondly.