Thu, May 13, 2010 page19

• Ronaldinho among Cup’s overlooked stars

  • AP
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  Ronaldinho was left out of Brazil’s probable World Cup squad, Francesco Totti and Luca Toni were missing from Italy’s 30-man squad and Jamie Carragher came out of retirement for England as coaches issued their provisional lists on Tuesday.

  The coaches of the 32 teams headed for next month’s championship in South Africa faced a FIFA deadline on Tuesday to announce provisional 30-man squads.

  The lists included some walking wounded who hope to be fit for the tournament and some unexpected inclusions, while some big names who missed out.

  Brazil coach Dunga announced his main 23-man squad first, causing a fuss when Ronaldinho missed out. Dunga later unveiled a full 30-man provisional squad that included Ronaldinho, but made it clear that the AC Milan star would only be used in case of injuries.

  Adriano and Neymar were left out of Brazil’s 30-man squad, along with three-time FIFA world player of the year Ronaldo and veteran left back Roberto Carlos.

  Dunga has stuck to most of the players who helped Brazil win last year’s Confederations Cup and finish top of South American qualifying.

  “These players are winners,” Dunga said. “There is no doubt that they are prepared to help Brazil reach its goal. They are ready to give their best for the country.”

  “Ronaldinho’s quality and capacity as a player is indisputable. But my decision has to be made based on reason. I have to make a decision based on what happens on the field,” he said.

  Karim Benzema was a surprise omission from France’s provisional squad and coach Raymond Domenech said it was because of his form on the field rather than allegations of his involvement in an under-age sex scandal with an escort.

  “To me this is not a concern,” said Domenech, who also left out veteran midfielder Patrick Vieira, but selected off-form striker Thierry Henry. “I’m only thinking about football and about what the players want to give on the pitch.”

  World Player of the Year Lionel Messi will lead Argentina’s attack at the World Cup, but there was no room for veteran defender and Inter captain Javier Zanetti in coach Diego Maradona’s provisional list.

  The 30-man Argentina squad included four high-profile forwards to support Barcelona’s Messi — Gonzalo Higuain, Diego Milito, Martin Palermo and Carlos Tevez.

  Ruud van Nistelrooy was left out of the Netherlands squad despite having recovered from a long-term knee injury. Netherlands coach Bert van Marwijk said the 34-year-old former Manchester United and Real Madrid striker was not at a high enough level to play at the World Cup.

  There was speculation that Totti might also come out of international retirement to help Italy defend the World Cup. However, when Marcello Lippi’s squad was announced on Tuesday, there was no sign of his name, nor that of Toni.

  Because the final 23 must come from these provisional lists, that means no chance for Totti of Toni unless there is a serious injury to one of the other squad members.

  Spain’s Xavi Hernandez, Cesc Fabregas and Fernando Torres were selected despite carrying injuries. The deadline for the final squad is three weeks away.

  Eighteen of the Spain squad of 23 that triumphed impressively at the 2008 European Championship are in this one, too.

  Carragher announced by Fabio Capello on the deadline day set by FIFA.

  Capello included Gareth Barry even though the Manchester City midfielder is sidelined for three weeks with ankle ligament damage.

  With defenders Ledley King and Rio Ferdinand dealing with persistent injury problems, Capello decided to bring Carragher back.

  First up for England is a group game against the US at Rustenburg on June 12. US coach Bob Bradley had no surprises in his squad, but could not find a place for Charlie Davies, who made a good recovery from a car smash but has been sidelined for seven months.

  A former teammate of Carragher’s at Liverpool and now with Turkey’s Galatasaray, Australia’s Harry Kewell is struggling with a groin injury, but Socceroos coach Pim Verbeek is confident he will make it in time for South Africa.

  “There are rumors, there are opinions. But Harry will be ready,” Verbeek said.

  Switzerland selected its final squad of 23 three weeks early and has included 18-year-old Xherdan Shaqiria, who has only 45 minutes international experience. The FC Basel midfielder made his club debut in July and had his first taste of international football against Uruguay in a friendly on March 3.

  Ivory Coast coach Sven-Goran Eriksson has a largely European-based squad that features Didier Drogba, whose 29 goals helped Chelsea win the Premier League.

  However, the former England and Mexico coach said on Tuesday he didn’t want his team to rely too heavily on Drogba’s goals.

  “It’s not enough to hope Drogba will go out and score some goals,” Eriksson said. “If we don’t play as a team, we cannot be impressive. Quality isn’t enough in football, you need to work together.”

  Chile coach Marcelo Bielsa steered clear of surprises by selecting most of the players who featured in qualifying. Goalkeeper Luis Marin, of Chilean club Union Espanola, was the most unexpected name, picked after being overlooked during qualifying.
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