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Hugo Cuenca (footballer)

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In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Cuenca and the second or maternal family name is Martínez.
Hugo Cuenca
Personal information
Full name Hugo Francisco Cuenca Martínez[1]
Date of birth (2005-01-08) 8 January 2005 (age 19)
Place of birth Coronel Oviedo, Paraguay[1]
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s)
Team information
Current team
 Milan Futuro
Number 11
Youth career
0000–2022 Deportivo Capiatá
2022–2024 AC Milan
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2024– Milan Futuro 9 (0)
2024– AC Milan 0 (0)
International career‡
2019 Paraguay U15 6 (0)
2020 Paraguay U17 3 (0)
2024– Paraguay 1 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 23:45, 20 October 2024 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 11 September 2024

Hugo Francisco Cuenca Martínez (born 8 January 2005) is a Paraguayan professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder and winger for Serie C Group B club Milan Futuro (the reserve team of Serie A club AC Milan) and the Paraguay national team.

Club career

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Born in Coronel Oviedo, Paraguay,[2][3] Cuenca played football at Deportivo Capiatá, before going on a series of trials with AC Milan, starting from December 2019,[2][4][5] and finally joining the Italian club in August 2022, as he signed a three-year professional contract in the process.[2][6] He was subsequently included in the first team's pre-season campaign shortly after his signing, and went on to feature in several friendly matches.[2][7]

Throughout the whole 2022–23 season, Cuenca played for AC Milan's under-19 team, scoring four goals – one of which, a strike against Hellas Verona, was nominated for goal of the season –[8] and four assists in twenty-eight games;[3][8] he also helped the team reach the UEFA Youth League semi-finals for the first time in their history,[9][10] although they were eventually eliminated by Croatian side Hajduk Split.[11][12]

In the summer of 2023, Cuenca was once again included in the first-team squad by manager Stefano Pioli ahead of the 2023–24 season.[3][13] He began training with the first team in January 2024.

He joined AC Milan for their 2024–25 pre-season, getting some minutes of playing time on the friendly matches. Cuenca made his professional debut on 10 August 2024, starting for the newly created reserve team Milan Futuro, on a 3–0 away win Coppa Italia Serie C first round match against Lecco.[14]

On 31 August 2024, Cuenca received his first call-up with AC Milan, as an unused substitute for a 2–2 away draw Serie A match against Lazio.[15]

International career

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Cuenca has represented Paraguay at under-15 and under-17 level.[1]

He received his first call-up with the Paraguay national team for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification matches against Uruguay and Brazil on 6 and 10 September 2024, respectively.[16] Cuenca debuted against Brazil at the Estadio Defensores del Chaco. He substituted Miguel Almirón in the 86th minute as Paraguay won 1–0.[17]

Career statistics

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Club

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As of match played 20 October 2024
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Milan Futuro 2024–25 Serie C 9 0 2[a] 0 — 11 0
Career total 9 0 2 0 0 0 11 0
Notes
  1. ^ Appearances in Coppa Italia Serie C

International

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As of match played 10 September 2024
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Paraguay 2024 1 0
Total 1 0

Personal life

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Born in Paraguay,[2][3] Cuenca also holds a Spanish passport, which he acquired in order to accommodate his move to AC Milan (due to transfer rules for non-EU players).[18]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Hugo Cuenca at WorldFootball.net
  2. ^ a b c d e Pietrella, Francesco (10 August 2022). "Fantasia, assist e tecnica: il Milan blinda il gioiellino Cuenca. E Pioli lo prova già..." [Fantasy, assists and technique: Milan locks down the Cuenca jewel. And Pioli already proves it...] (in Italian). Gazzetta dello Sport. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d Nalesso, Pietro (24 August 2023). "[FOCUS] Hugo Cuenca e non solo, 5 talenti pronti a prendersi il Primavera 1". MondoPrimavera (in Italian). Retrieved 17 September 2023.
  4. ^ Abo Arab, Omar (7 July 2021). "Maldini pensa anche al Milan del futuro: vicino il "nuovo Messi da 1 metro e 85"" [Maldini also thinks of the Milan of the future: the "new Messi of 1.85 meters" is close]. 90min.com (in Italian). Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  5. ^ "Hugo Cuenca, chi è il 17enne paraguaiano che ha stregato il Milan" [Hugo Cuenca, who is the 17-year-old Paraguayan who bewitched Milan]. calcio247.it (in Italian). 15 July 2022. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  6. ^ "Hugo Cuenca fichó por el Milan" [Hugo Cuenca signed for Milan] (in Spanish). La Nación. 5 August 2022. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  7. ^ "Hugo Cuenca, la joya paraguaya que Milan inscribió para la Serie A" [Hugo Cuenca, the Paraguayan jewel that Milan signed up for Serie A]. TyC Sports (in Spanish). 10 August 2022. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  8. ^ a b Pinto, Jorge (22 June 2023). "Siguiendo los pasos de Enciso, lo que hizo Hugo Cuenca con el Milán que es furor en las redes" [Following in the footsteps of Enciso, what Hugo Cuenca did with Milan that is all the rage in the networks]. elfutbolero.com.py (in Spanish). Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  9. ^ Pietrella, Francesco (15 March 2023). "Da Nava a El Hilali: chi sono i ragazzi di Abate che hanno scritto la storia" (in Italian). La Gazzetta dello Sport. Archived from the original on 23 March 2023. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
  10. ^ Pietrella, Francesco (14 March 2023). "Un gol per tempo: il Milan elimina l'Atletico e vola alle Final Four di Nyon" (in Italian). La Gazzetta dello Sport. Archived from the original on 14 March 2023. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
  11. ^ Antonelli, Michele (21 April 2023). "Sfortuna e ingenuità, il Milan crolla sul più bello. In finale ci va l'Hajduk spinto da 17mila tifosi" (in Italian). La Gazzetta dello Sport. Archived from the original on 21 April 2023. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
  12. ^ Gualano, Leonardo (21 April 2023). "Youth League, Hajduk-Milan 3-1: si spegne in semifinale il sogno dei rossoneri". Goal.com (in Italian). Archived from the original on 23 April 2023. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
  13. ^ Vera, Julio (6 July 2023). "Hugo Cuenca asciende al primer equipo del Milan" [Hugo Cuenca is promoted to the first team of Milan]. ladeportiva.com.py (in Spanish). Retrieved 24 August 2023.
  14. ^ https://www.acmilan.com/en/news/articles/milan-futuro/2024-08-10/winning-debut-for-milan-futuro-3-0-against-lecco
  15. ^ https://www.legaseriea.it/en/match/2024-25aunicouni3lazmil
  16. ^ @albirroja (1 September 2024). "¡Plantel completo para lo que se viene! 💪" (in Spanish). Retrieved 2 September 2024 – via Instagram.
  17. ^ "Paraguay v Brazil game report". ESPN. 10 September 2024.
  18. ^ Moggia, Valerio (7 July 2021). "Hugo Cuenca, il Milan si assicura un possibile crack" [Hugo Cuenca, Milan secures a possible crack]. minutidirecupero.it (in Italian). Retrieved 24 August 2023.
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