Nicola Profeta Cabrales (born 27 February 2006) is a Venezuelan footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for the Brazilian team Santos and the Venezuela national football team.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Nicola Profeta Cabrales[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 27 February 2006 | ||
| Place of birth | Puerto La Cruz, Venezuela | ||
| Height | 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | Defensive midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Santos Futebol Clube | ||
| Number | - | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Centro Gallego | |||
| Garotos de Mello | |||
| Ciudad Vinotinto | |||
| 2017–2023 | Deportivo Cali | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2023 2024- | Santos Futebol Clube | 2 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2022 | Colombia U15 | 3 | (0) |
| 2023 | Colombia U17 | 4 | (0) |
| 2023– | Venezuela U17 | 7 | (1) |
| 2023– | Venezuela | 1 | (0) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 24 December 2023 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 24 December 2023 | |||
Early life edit
Profeta was born in Puerto La Cruz in the Venezuelan state of Anzoátegui to a Venezuelan mother and a father with Italian citizenship.[2][3]
Club career edit
Having taken an interest in football from the age of three, Profeta began his career in his native Venezuela with academy sides Centro Gallego de Puerto La Cruz, Garotos de Mello PG and Ciudad Vinotinto FC.[4][5] In 2017, his family travelled to neighbouring Colombia for a vacation, and while in the country they decided to stay, due to the Crisis in Venezuela.[4] Shortly after making the stay permanent, Profeta joined the academy of professional side Deportivo Cali.[4]
Profeta made his professional debut with Deportivo Cali on 29 November 2023, coming on as a second-half substitute for Juan Castilla in a 2–0 home loss to Deportes Tolima.[6]
International career edit
Youth edit
Colombia edit
Profeta is eligible to represent Venezuela, Colombia and Italy at international level. Having represented Colombia at the 2022 Bolivarian Games, where Colombia finished in third place, Profeta was named in the Colombia under-17 squad for friendlies ahead of the 2023 South American U-17 Championship.[7] He was named captain of the side for the tournament, but his performances failed to impress as Colombia were knocked out in the first round, finishing bottom of their group with only one point.[7]
Venezuela edit
In July 2023, it was reported that Profeta had switched his international allegiance to Venezuela, accepting an early approach from the Venezuelan Football Federation (FVF) to represent the nation at the 2023 FIFA U-17 World Cup.[7][8] This was confirmed on 31 July by the FVF, when Profeta was called up to a training camp at the National High Performance Center on Margarita Island.[9] The following month Profeta stated in an interview with Colombian radio network RCN Radio that, despite "taking advantage of the personal opportunity that Vinotinto [had given] him", he had not closed the door to a potential call-up by Colombia in future.[10]
His first action with the Venezuela under-17 side came at a friendly youth tournament in Niigata, Japan, where Venezuela beat the under-18 side of Turkish side Galatasaray, the Turkey under-17 national team, the Japan under-17 national team, a representative side from the Niigata Prefecture and the New Zealand under-17 national team to win the tournament.[11] Despite his earlier comments, in which he stated that he could one day represent Colombia in future, he stated in an October 2023 interview that "Colombia is already the past, that is already behind us" and that he was "building a new future" with Venezuela.[12]
Senior edit
On 6 December 2023, Profeta was called up to the Venezuela full side for a friendly against Colombia, where the squad was composed mainly of under-23 players.[13] He made his full international debut five days later, coming on as a second-half substitute for Jesús Bueno in the 1–0 loss at the DRV PNK Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.[14]
Style of play edit
A versatile player, Profeta is capable of playing as a defensive midfielder, central defender, left-back or winger.[11][15]
Career statistics edit
Club edit
- As of 24 December 2023.[16]
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Deportivo Cali | 2023 | Categoría Primera A | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| Career total | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||
- Notes
International edit
- As of matches played 24 December 2023.
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Venezuela | 2023 | 1 | 0 |
| Total | 1 | 0 | |
References edit
- ^ a b Nicola Profeta at WorldFootball.net
- ^ Ariza, Diego (17 March 2023). "Él es Nicola Profeta: capitán de la selección Colombia sub-17 que jugaría para Italia" [This is Nicola Profeta: captain of the Colombia under-17 team who would play for Italy]. Infobae (in Spanish). Retrieved 6 November 2023.
- ^ Torres, Eudo (26 July 2023). "Nicola Profeta, capitán de la Sub-17 de Colombia, jugará con Vinotinto" [Nicola Profeta, captain of the Colombian U-17, will play with the Vinotinto]. Radio Fe y Alegría Noticias (in Spanish). Retrieved 6 November 2023.
- ^ a b c "El Profeta del fútbol" [The football prophet]. blog.cambridgecali.edu.co (in Spanish). Retrieved 6 November 2023.
- ^ "Nadie es 'Profeta' en su tierra…" [Nobody is a prophet in their own land…]. Solovenex (in Spanish). 20 March 2023. Retrieved 6 November 2023.
- ^ "Nicola Profeta jugó sus primeros minutos en la primera división de Colombia" [Nicola Profeta played his first minutes in the first division of Colombia]. Sports Venezuela (in Spanish). 30 November 2023. Retrieved 9 February 2024.
- ^ a b c "Nicola Profeta, capitán de Colombia sub 17, jugaría con Venezuela" [Nicola Profeta, captain of Colombia sub 17, would play with Venezuela]. Diario AS (in Spanish). 22 July 2023. Retrieved 6 November 2023.
- ^ "Colombia perdería una de sus joyas: muy cerca de cambiar de Selección" [Colombia would lose one of its pearls: very close to changing the national team]. FutbolRed (in Spanish). 22 July 2023. Retrieved 6 November 2023.
- ^ "FVF confirmó que Nicola Profeta se sumará a la convocatoria de la Vinotinto Sub-17" [FVF confirmed that Nicola Profeta will join the Vinotinto U-17 squad]. Con El Mazo Dando (in Spanish). 31 July 2023. Retrieved 6 November 2023.
- ^ "Nicola Profeta: "Nunca le cierro la puerta a Colombia, ni Venezuela, ni en ningún otro lado"" [Nicola Profeta: "I never close the door to Colombia, nor Venezuela, nor anywhere else"]. Pasión X el Deporte (in Spanish). 9 August 2023. Retrieved 6 November 2023.
- ^ a b Puerto, Guillermo (19 September 2023). "Nicola Profeta, el canterano campeón con Venezuela" [Nicola Profeta, the youth graduate champion with Venezuela]. Futbolete (in Spanish). Retrieved 6 November 2023.
- ^ "Nicola Profeta: "Colombia ya es pasado, eso ya quedó atrás"" [Nicola Profeta: "Colombia is already in the past, that is already behind us"]. La Liga de los Talentos (in Spanish). 24 October 2023. Retrieved 6 November 2023.
- ^ "Venezuela con la Sub 23 para enfrentar a Colombia" [Venezuela with the under-23s to face Colombia]. Diario AS (in Spanish). 6 December 2023. Retrieved 9 February 2024.
- ^ "Colombia es superior a Venezuela y lo vence por 1–0" [Colombia is superior than Venezuela and beat them 1–0]. TNT Sports (in Spanish). 10 December 2023. Retrieved 9 February 2024.
- ^ Puerto, Guillermo (18 October 2023). "Deportivo Cali: ¡Es el momento de Nicola Profeta!" [Deportivo Cali: It's Nicola Profeta's time!]. futbolete.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 6 November 2023.
- ^ Nicola Profeta at Soccerway