Hugo Cuenca (footballer)
Paraguayan footballer (born 2005) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Hugo Francisco Cuenca Martínez (born 8 January 2005) is a Paraguayan professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder and winger for Serie A club Genoa and the Paraguay national team.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Hugo Francisco Cuenca Martínez[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 8 January 2005 | ||
| Place of birth | Coronel Oviedo, Paraguay[1] | ||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Position(s) | |||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Genoa | ||
| Number | 30 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2022 | Deportivo Capiatá | ||
| 2022–2024 | AC Milan | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2024–2025 | Milan Futuro | 9 | (0) |
| 2024–2025 | AC Milan | 0 | (0) |
| 2025– | Genoa | 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 | |||
Club career
Summarize
Perspective
Early career
Born in Coronel Oviedo, Paraguay,[2][3] Cuenca played football through the youth system of 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]
AC Milan and Milan Futuro
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 in 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]
Genoa
He moved to fellow Serie A club Genoa on 3 February 2025, permanently on a free transfer.[16]
International career
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.[17] Cuenca debuted against Brazil at the Estadio Defensores del Chaco. He substituted Miguel Almirón in the 86th minute as Paraguay won 1–0.[18]
Personal life
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).[19]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 20 October 2024
| 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
- Appearances in Coppa Italia Serie C
International
- As of match played 10 September 2024
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paraguay | 2024 | 1 | 0 |
| Total | 1 | 0 | |
References
External links
Wikiwand - on
Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.