Santos Laguna’s 20-year-old striker Tahiel Jiménez is having a breakout moment in Liga MX, and his prolific form could earn him a maiden call-up to Mexico’s senior national team next month with Raúl Jímenez sidelined for the rest of the year.

A little over halfway through the Liga MX Apertura 2026 season, Santos have become one of the biggest stories of the campaign, thanks to five straight wins that have placed them firmly in the playoff race after finishing bottom of the league in three of the last four seasons.

After failing to register a single start for Santos since April, manager Renato Paiva finally gave Jiménez a chance to impress from the opening whistle in their most recent two games. The young striker grabbed his opportunity and ran away with it.

Jiménez scored a brace to lead Santos to a 2–1 win over Atlético San Luis on Oct. 11, before scoring a hat-trick on Saturday in the 5–0 pummeling of Querétaro.…