Onel Hernández Will Not Be Able to Play with Cuba in the 2023 Gold Cup

May 23, 2023

The Cuban national soccer team will not be able to count on the services of Onel Hernández in the upcoming 2023 Gold Cup, which will be held in several cities in the United States starting on June 27.

After several weeks of rumors and speculation, we communicated directly with the most relevant Caribbean striker at the moment and he assured us that "he had to undergo drainage of a cyst in his right knee, so he will have to be out of action for the next six weeks in order to avoid a relapse".

The absence of the Avilés native, who competes in the Championship (second level of English soccer) with Norwich City, constitutes a major blow to the aspirations of Los Leones del Caribe in the top tournament of national teams in our geographic area, in which they also will not be able to count on the key players Karel Espino and Dairon Reyes, who suffered serious injuries just a few weeks ago.

Taking into account the current situation, those led by Pablo Elier Sánchez will have to make the most of their preparatory stay in Chile and Uruguay in the coming month of June. There, the Pinareño strategist will have to test alternatives and make the necessary adjustments to arrive at the maximum regional tournament of national teams with a defined starting lineup.

The Cuban squad has scheduled a couple of high-level friendly matches prior to this competition. On June 11, the Caribbeans will face Chile at the Estadio Ester Roa Rebolledo in the city of Concepción in the Andean country, and then move to Uruguay, where they will play on June 20 against the Uruguayan team at the Estadio Centenario in Montevideo.