Edson Castillo has suffered the consequences of his drop in form at Kaizer Chiefs which came with Cavin Johnson taking over as the interim boss last October.
Castillo was the top performer in his first three months at Chiefs while Molefi Ntseki was in charge.
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The Venezuelan had four goals and had started all but one of the 13 matches that he played before the appointment of Johnson.
Instead of gathering further pace after Johnson took charge of the dressing room, Castillo scored once and then immediately found himself with less minutes.
From playing games from start to finish like he had done under in 10 out of his 13 matches under Ntseki, it didn't happen as frequent anymore as he also got to start games from the bench.
Castillo played eight games from the bench under Johnson thus diluting the influence he had earlier in the season.
Johnson highlighted that the problem with Castillo was that what would happen whenever he went away for international duty.
It is the same national team where he has now ultimately lost his place with the Venezuelans having taken notice of what has happened at Chiefs.
The 30-year-old was named in the preliminary squad for the 2014 Copa America to be played in the USA from June 20 – July 14 but has now found himself dropped from the trimmed squad.
This means he will watch from home as La Vinotinto engage Mexico, Ecuador, and Jamaica in Group B.
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Castillo played all four group matches at the previous Copa America played in Brazil (2021) while he was with Caracas FC.
Venezuela coach Fernando Batista has opted for players based in USA, France, Spain, Portugal, Mexico, and Brazil in his midfield.
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