Keylor Navas said in 2023 he wanted to play for América

Keylor Navas said in 2023 that he would have liked to play for América before later arriving at Pumas. The line returned in 2025 after he joined Club Universidad Nacional, and it now hangs over a goalkeeper who has already faced América twice in this setting.

Navas and América

While he was with Nottingham Forest in the Premier League, Navas was asked which Mexican team he would have liked to play for. His answer was direct: “Qué difícil. México tiene grandes equipos, pero yo creo que para mí me gustaría jugar en el América”.

That quote did not disappear. It resurfaced after he landed at Pumas, where his role has made the old answer part of the conversation around him again. For a goalkeeper now tied to Club Universidad Nacional, the contrast is plain: the team he named in 2023 is the same opponent he has already met in Mexico.

Pumas Against América

Navas has faced América twice as a player in this context. The record is split, with one victory and one defeat.

Pumas beat América 1-0 in this tournament. Last semester, they lost 4-1 to América. Those two results frame the quote differently now, because the same opponent that once fit his stated preference has also become part of his day-to-day reality at Pumas.

Efraín Juárez and renewal

He has also renewed his contract with Pumas, and Efraín Juárez was important in that decision. That keeps the focus on where he is now, not where he once said he might have wanted to go.

The old America line still follows him because it came before his move to Pumas, then gained new weight after his arrival and renewal. For Pumas, the practical read is simple: their goalkeeper has already answered the question with his words, and his results against América have now given those words a new edge.