The head coach of the Brazilian national team, Dunga, officially announced yesterday a list of 40 football players who are aiming to play in the 2016 "Copa America" tournament. The list includes a number of surprises. Brazil's national team will not see their captain and brightest star Neymar in the tournament. The country's football federation failed to convince the "Barcelona" club, and the forward will only be released for the Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games. Also missing from the list by the coach's decision is one of the best left-back defenders in the world, Marcelo, who has not been called up to the national team for some time. Interestingly, the Paris "Saint-Germain" defensive duo Thiago Silva and David Luiz did not find a place among the 40 football players. Among the contenders, we also do not see the name of the right-back defender from Madrid's "Real", Danilo, but there is a place for the experienced Kaka in the midfield. On May 5th, Dunga will have to reduce his preliminary list of candidates to 23 footballers. The "Copa America" tournament in the United States will start on June 3rd and finish on June 26th. Preliminary list of candidates for the Brazilian national team: Goalkeepers: Alisson (Internacional), Marcelo Grohe (Gremio), Diego Alves (Valencia), and Ederson (Benfica). Defenders: Dani Alves (Barcelona), Fabinho (Monaco), Fagner (Corinthians), Alex Sandro (Juventus), Douglas Santos (Atletico Mineiro), Filipe Luis (Atletico Madrid), Gabriel Paulista (Arsenal), Gil (Shandong Luneng), Jemerson (Roma), Marquinhos (PSG), and Miranda (Inter). Midfielders: Rodrigo Caio (Sao Paulo), Casemiro (Real Madrid), Elias (Corinthians), Fernandinho (Man City), Luiz Gustavo (Wolfsburg), Rafinha (Barcelona), Walace (Gremio), Felipe Anderson (Lazio), Kaka (Orlando City), Lucas Lima (Santos), Lucas Moura (PSG), Oscar (Chelsea), Ganso (Sao Paulo), Philippe Coutinho (Liverpool), Renato Augusto (Beijing Guoan), Willian (Chelsea), Alex Teixeira (Jiangsu Suning), and Douglas Costa (Bayern). Forwards: Roberto Firmino (Liverpool), Gabriel (Santos), Gabriel Jesus (Palmeiras), Hulk (Zenit), Ricardo Oliveira (Santos), Jonas (Benfica), and Luan (Gremio).
