Kaizer Chiefs' top performer Edson Castillo has been finally rewarded for his superb form at club level after earning his latest cap.
Since moving to Chiefs, Castillo has been in great form but that hasn't transformed to international caps despite being called up.
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Castillo was called up in October as replacement for Jesus Bueno for games against Brazil and Chile but didn't get any minutes.
Then for the latest international break during which La Vinotinto have games against Ecuador and Peru, the Chiefs man was included again.
Early on Friday, Castillo was brought in to earn his seventh cap as Venezuela couldn't break down Ecuador to settle for a goalless draw.
Castillo was the last change for the hosts replacing Cristian Casseres Jr. with six minutes remaining but couldn't do anything to change the scoreline.
Prior to his latest cap, Castillo last played two years ago against Brazil in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers.
Venezuela's next match is away in Lima against Peru on Wednesday morning (04h00).
After that Castillo will face a taxing trip back to Johannesburg with Chiefs playing Moroka Swallows in their next game.
Castillo has followed the footsteps of Jose Torrealba in earning national team call-ups while in the books of Chiefs following his impressive start that has pushed him to five goals in 16 appearances.
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With up to seven qualification spots available for the 10 South American countries, Venezuela will be hoping to go through to their first ever World Cup finals as they currently sit fourth after five games.
As the third lowest ranked country (49 on world rankings) in CONMEBOL, Venezuela remains the only South American country to hand out caps to players plying their trade in the PSL with Rafael Dudamel having also played for Venezuela while at Mamelodi Sundowns.
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