The Brazilian coach, Dorival Júnior, announced this Friday the list of those called up for the 2024 Copa América in the United States led by Vinícius Júnior, Endrick, Raphinha, Rodrygo Goes and Éder Militão, and from which Neymar and Casemiro were left out.
The Saudi Al-Hilal forward will not arrive in time to play in the continental tournament, which begins on June 20, despite the good progress he has made after breaking the cruciate ligament and meniscus in his left knee.
The mantle of leader of the Canarinha will thus be assumed by Vinícius Júnior, considered by many the fittest player on the world football scene and increasingly decisive at Real Madrid.
Another of the big absences on the list is that of Casemiro. The Manchester United midfielder has suffered various injuries this season and will not be in the continental tournament.
The announcement of the call was marked by an emotional memory of the victims of the devastating floods suffered by southern Brazil and which have so far left 114 dead, 146 missing and more than 400,000 displaced in the state of Rio Grande do Sul.
Dorival said at a press conference that his list is the result of “hard work” by his entire team, which included “many national and international trips.”
One of the novelties of the call is the return of Militão, after recovering from his serious knee injury, which caused him to miss a large part of the season with Real Madrid.
The coach said he was “sure that he will arrive very well” at the competition, emphasizing that Real Madrid is giving him minutes little by little and stressing that he knows his abilities and his conditions.
There will also be Endrick, the young man from Palmeiras and future Real Madrid player, at 17 years old; Raphinha, who has had a good campaign with Barcelona; and Rodrygo Goes, Vinícius’ teammate in the white team.
From Girona, a revelation team in the Spanish League, there are full-back Yan Couto and winger Savinho. The attacker Samuel Lino, from Atlético de Madrid, was also left out.
Brazil will debut in the Copa América on June 24 with Costa Rica at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles. Before that, they will play two warm-up friendlies against Mexico and the United States, on June 8 and 12 in Texas and Florida, respectively.
BRAZIL’S CALL TO PLAY FRIENDLY FRIENDSHIPS WITH MEXICO, USA AND THE 2024 AMERICAN CUP
The Copa América will be the first big test for Dorival Júúnior, in charge since January and who in his first two games in charge of Brazil beat England at Wembley (0-1) and tied with Spain at the Santiago Bernabéu (3-3 ).
Brazil’s list for the Copa América:
