The Copa America 2024 is approaching quickly, with its new edition scheduled to take place in USA in just over a month. In this context, the selections of the Conmebol They have begun to reveal the names of the footballers called up for this prestigious tournament. Chili has been one of the first to announce its preliminary list, under the technical direction of Ricardo Gareca.
However, there was one that has a serious history and its presence in North America could not be assured. Is about Luciano Cabralmidfielder for Coquimbo Unidos of the country’s First Division ‘southern’ and that has been one of the surprises of the ‘Tiger’ for his great performance in the group ‘aurinegro’so much so that many fans asked for his call.
To begin with, it is important to mention that Luciano Cabral is a midfielder who was born in Mendoza, Argentina on April 26, 1995. However, from a very young age he represented the Chile team because of his grandfather’s nationality. This allowed him to compete in the South American Sub 20 in 2015 in Uruguay, being one of the differentials of his team. Due to his exquisite handling of the ball he was compared to Jorge ‘Magician’ Valdivia.
His career led him to play for the minor divisions of Sport Club Pacífico, Andes FC, Ferro Carril Oeste de Alvear, Children’s Activities Commission (CAI), River Plate, Argentinos Juniors, with which he debuted in the First Division, and then had a step through Atlético Paranaense in Brazil.
The life of Luciano Cabral took a radical turn on January 1, 2017, when he participated in a street fight in General Alvear, in Mendoza, Argentina, and was accused of the murder of Joan Villegas (27 years old).
After several investigations, in 2019, the Justice of said town ‘gaucha’ He declared him a “co-author of simple homicide,” which led to him being sentenced to 9 and a half years in prison. The main person responsible was the player’s father, José Cabral (16 years in prison).
At the moment, Cabral Melgarejo has already served 5 and a half years of his sentence, and was released on conditional release for his good behavior.
Luciano Cabral returned to professional activity with Coquimbo Kingdom 2023, where he played a total of 31 games, in which he scored 5 goals and gave 4 assists.
But in the current season, he has already scored 3 goals and distributed 1 assist in 15 matches, which is why Ricardo Gareca decided to include him in the provisional list of summoned of the Chile team to face the Copa America 2024.
Now, in the event that the Argentine coach considers him on the final roster, will he be able to travel to the United States? The rules of that country for granting visas are quite strict in reference to crimes. Their seriousness is evaluated, whether the sentence has already been served and other aspects. It would have to be subjected to a prior evaluation.
Yes ok Ricardo Gareca announced a prelist of Chili for the Copa America 2024only on Wednesday, June 12, the 23 chosen to represent the ‘red’. For now, those included in the initial payroll are the following:
Archers: Claudio Bravo, Gabriel Arias, Brayan Cortés, Lawrence Vigouroux and Vicente Reyes.
Defenses: Mauricio Isla, Nicolás Díaz, Matías Catalán, Igor Lichnovsky, Felipe Loyola, Paulo Díaz, Gary Medel, Guillermo Maripán, Benjamín Kuscevic, Enzo Roco, Gabriel Suazo, Francisco Sierralta, Sebastián Venegas and Erick Wiemberg.
Midfielders: Esteban Pavez, Erick Pulgar, Diego Valdés, César Pérez, Diego Valencia, Claudio Baeza, Rodrigo Echeverría, Maximiliano Guerrero, Thomas Galdames, Pablo Galdames, Eugenio Mena, Nicolas Fernández, Marcelo Díaz, Arturo Vidal, Luciano Cabral, Jean Meneses, Williams Alarcón, Lucas Assadi and Ulises Ortegoza.
Forwards: Ben Brereton, Eduardo Vargas, Alexis Sánchez, Carlos Palacios, Darío Osorio, Diego Rubio, Óscar Opazo, Gonzalo Tapia, Vicente Pizarro, Felipe Mora, Steffan Pino, Cristián Zavala and Víctor Dávila.
