Brazil have chosen not to include Liverpool’s Philippe Coutinho for their upcoming matches against Costa Rica and USA, with manager Dunga instead opting for the experience of veteran playmaker Kaka, who has been recalled.
The news will, if anything, come as a huge boost to the Reds, who now know that we won’t lose our 23-year-old talisman ahead of the crucial Premier League match against Manchester United – with the trip to Old Trafford coming just four days after the second of those Brazil matches.
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Even more bizarrely, the decision has come just days after Coutinho’s brilliant winner in the opening day of our new Premier League season against Stoke City, where the little magical single handedly won us our three points.
In quotes attributed to Dunga in the Liverpool Echo, the Brazil boss revealed that Coutinho had – in his opinion – been given a chance during the Copa America, but had not lived up to expectations as his side crashed out early on.
He said: “We gave him a chance at the Copa America. You can’t just build with just youngsters, you need experience to help.” – It all seems very strange to us. Clearly Dunga didn’t have his eye on the Britannia Stadium last week.
Coutinho’s Liverpool teammate, Roberto Firmino, has made the squad – shown in full below.
Confira a lista completa! #ConvocaçãodaSeleção pic.twitter.com/vhUjtBEer8
— CBF Futebol (@CBF_Futebol) August 13, 2015