Dunga was ruthless in his selection for the upcoming Copa America Centenario, with star defenders David Luiz, Thiago Silva and Marcelo left out of Brazil’s 40-man preliminary squad.
With captain Neymar already absent for the tournament in the United States in June due to his participation at August’s Olympic Games, David Luiz, Silva and Marcelo also failed to make the initial list that will be reduced to 23 players on May 5.
While Silva’s absence was not surprising, having not featured under Dunga since last year’s Copa America, the omission of his Paris Saint-Germain team-mate David Luiz was.
David Luiz – with 56 caps to his name – was involved in Brazil’s last set of World Cup qualifiers in March, partnering Miranda in defence in the 2-2 draw with Uruguay before he was suspended for the 2-2 stalemate in Paraguay.
Real Madrid full-back Marcelo missed last month’s qualifiers and had earned just five caps since Dunga replaced Luiz Felipe Scolari in 2014.
While the key quartet sit out the Copa America, there are 10 debutants who could feature.
China-based forward Alex Teixeira, Gabriel Paulista, Fagner, Jemerson, Rodrigo Caio, Douglas Santos, Walace, Luan, Gabriel and Gabriel Jesus are all vying to impress Dunga before he selects his final squad.
Brazil have been drawn in Group B at the Copa America, opening the tournament against Ecuador on June 4 before facing Haiti (June 8) and Peru (June 12).
Brazil’s 40-man preliminary squad in full:
Goalkeepers: Alisson (Internacional), Diego Alves (Valencia), Ederson (Benfica), Marcelo Grohe (Gremio)
Defenders: Dani Alves (Barcelona), Rodrigo Caio (Sao Paulo), Fabinho (Monaco), Fagner (Corinthians), Gil (Shandong Luneng), Jemerson (Monaco), Filipe Luis (Atletico Madrid), Marquinhos (Paris Saint-Germain), Miranda (Inter), Gabriel Paulista (Arsenal), Alex Sandro (Juventus), Douglas Santos (Atletico Mineiro)
Midfielders: Rafinha Alcantara (Barcelona), Felipe Anderson (Lazio), Renato Augusto (Beijing Guoan), Casemiro (Real Madrid), Douglas Costa (Bayern Munich), Philippe Coutinho (Liverpool), Elias (Corinthians), Fernandinho (Manchester City), Paulo Henrique Ganso (Sao Paulo), Luiz Gustavo (Wolfsburg), Kaka (Orlando City), Lucas Lima (Santos), Lucas Moura (Paris Saint-Germain), Oscar (Chelsea), Walace (Gremio), Willian (Chelsea)
Forwards: Roberto Firmino (Liverpool), Gabriel (Santos), Hulk (Zenit), Gabriel Jesus (Palmeiras), Jonas (Benfica), Luan (Gremio), Ricardo Oliveira (Santos), Alex Teixeira (Jiangsu Suning)
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