Bolivia call up two Santos players for Copa play-off squad | OneFootball

Coach Óscar Villegas announced the call-up for the Bolivian national team this Monday. With the full squad available, the team includes Miguelito and Marcelo Torrez, both from Santos, as they aim to secure a spot in the World Cup.

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Without their all-time top scorer, Marcelo Martíns Moreno, and relying on the core of the squad that played in the South American Qualifiers, Bolivia announced this Monday the list of 28 players called up for the 2026 World Cup playoffs in Mexico at the end of the month.

Martín, 38, returned to the pitch in mid-February, after his last match in December 2023, aiming to help the Bolivian national team qualify for the World Cup in North America.

Martín signed with Oriente Petrolero and wanted to show his talent so that Bolivian coach Óscar Villegas would consider him for the playoff against Suriname, which will be played on the 26th of this month in Monterrey. If Bolivia wins, they will face Iraq in the final five days later.

The striker, with 31 goals and 108 appearances for the Bolivian national team, played two matches for Oriente Petrolero in the summer tournament, converting two penalties, but failed to convince Villegas, who had previously expressed a desire to see him play more regularly.

Betting on the core of the team

Without his main player of recent years, Villegas bet on the core of the squad from the South American qualifiers, although with some new faces, such as the call-up of young goalkeeper Gerónimo Govea from Montevideo Wanderers, and the exclusion of forward Carmelo Algarañaz.

The Bolivian coach, who is seeking qualification for a World Cup for the first time since 1994, ordered the start of pre-season training this Monday in the city of Santa Cruz.

La Verde has one last friendly next Sunday, at home, against Trinidad and Tobago, and will travel to Mexico the following week.

The Bolivian national team has one last home friendly next Sunday, against Trinidad and Tobago, and will travel to Mexico the following week.

List of call-ups:

Goalkeepers: Carlos Lampe (Bolívar), Guillermo Viscarra (Alianza Lima, Peru) and Gerónimo Govea (Montevideo Wanderers, Uruguay).

Defenders: Diego Medina (CSKA 1948 Sofia, Bulgaria), Yomar Rocha (Akron Tolyatti, Russia), Lucas Macazaga (Leganés, Spain), Roberto Fernández (Akron Tolyatti, Russia), Dieguito Rodríguez (Always Ready), Luis Haquín (Al-Tai, Saudi Arabia), Richet Gómez (Always Ready), Marcelo Tórrez (Santos, Brazil), Efraín Morales (CF Montreal, USA), Diego Arroyo (Shakhtar Donetsk, Ukraine) and Leonardo Zabala (Cancún, Mexico).

Midfielders: Ervin Vaca (Bolívar), Héctor Cuéllar (Always Ready), Robson Matheus (Bolívar), Moisés Villarroel (Blooming), Gabriel Villamíl (LDU Quito, Ecuador), Ramiro Vaca (Wydad Athletic, Morocco), Jesús Maraude (Always Ready) and Carlos Melgar (Bolívar).

Forwards: Víctor Abrego (The Strongest), Miguel Terceros (Santos, Brazil), Fernando Nava (Always Ready), Moisés Paniagua (Wydad Athletic, Morocco), Enzo Monteiro (Chungbuk Cheongju, South Korea) and Juan Godoy (Always Ready).

*With content from AFP.

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This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.