Venezuela factbox for Copa America
SANTIAGO, June 6 (Reuters) - Profile of the Venezuela team for the Copa America:
Number of appearances in finals: 15 (first in 1967)
Best performance: Fourth place: 2011
Drawn in Group C with Brazil, Peru and Colombia
FIFA ranking on June 4: 72
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Coach:
Noel Sanvicente
The 50-year-old made his name when he spent eight years as coach of Caracas FC, an incredibly long length of time in the volatile world of South American coaching.
He won five Venezuelan league titles during that time, then went on to win two more with less fashionable Zamora FC.
He also won five Venezuela titles and played 10 times for his country during his playing career which was cut short by a knee injury.
Sanvicente was the obvious choice to take over when Cesar Farias quit as coach last year and, although he began badly with four successive defeats in friendlies, Venezuela's form has picked up this year.
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Key player:
Tomas Rincon
The key player in midfield where he keeps play ticking over with his intelligent passing, Rincon had an outstanding Copa America four years ago when Venezuela reached the semi-finals.
A strong tackler, he spent five seasons with Hamburg SV before moving to Genoa this season, giving him ample top flight experience in Europe.
Raised at UA Maracaibo, he also played for Zamora and Deportivo Tachira in his homeland.
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Squad
Goalkeepers: Alain Baroja (Caracas FC), Dani Hernandez (Tenerife), Wuilker Farinez (Caracas FC)
Defenders: Fernando Amorebieta (Middlesbrough), Roberto Rosales (Malaga), Oswaldo Vizcarrondo (Nantes), Gabriel Cichero (Mineros), Alexander Gonzalez (Aarau), Andres Tunez (Buriram United), Wilker Angel (Tachira), Grenddy Perozo (Ajaccio).
Midfielders: Juan Arango (Xolos), Franklin Lucena (La Guaira), Tomas Rincon (Genoa), Luis Manuel Seijas (Santa Fe), Ronald Vargas (Balkesirspor), Cesar Gonzalez (Tachira), Rafael Acosta (Mineros), Alejandro Guerra (Atletico Nacional)
Forwards: Jose Salomon Rondon (Zenit St Petersburg), Jhon Murillo (Zamora), Josef Martinez (Torino), Edder Farias (Caracas FC), Christian Santos (NEC), Nicolas Fedor, (Rayo Vallecano), Gelmín Rivas (Tachira). (Writing by Brian Homewood in Berne; editing by Justin Palmer)
