Copa America 2019: Top 5 players to miss Brazil squad

The CONMEBOL Copa America returns for its forty-sixth edition this summer, guaranteeing the fans some more action to look forward to after the culmination of another delightful season in Europe.

Even though the kick-off is still almost five weeks away, some teams have already named their 32-man squad for the showpiece in Brazil, most notably the hosts themselves.

Neymar, Roberto Firmino, Alisson, Fernandinho, Thiago Silva and a host of other high-profile names have expectedly made the cut. But manager Tite has caused a stir with the omission of some big names who were heavily touted to feature. And there's another promising young gun who missed owing to an unfortunate injury.

So without any further ado, let's look at five such players who won't be a part of Brazil's Copa America campaign.

#5 Willian

The Chelsea midfielder's time at Stamford Bridge looks to have come to a head. He should look for greener pastures in the summer. Or at least, that's what the fans are clamouring for.

After the horrendous blooper from a corner in Chelsea's recent friendly match in the US (Iago Aspas, ahoy!), that has been the common sentiment resonating from the Blues faithfuls who are now visibly knackered at the sight of him gracing the club 's kits.

Willian didn't pull up any trees this season, even though he started 26 games under Maurizio Sarri. And now it's ramifications are felt in his international career as he was not only axed by Tite for the upcoming Copa America on home soil but also faces an uphill battle to resurrect his international career.

But contrary to the common sentiment, the statistics tell a different story: Willian managed to rack up three goals and seven assists in the Premier League, and also posted identical figures in the Europa League. So overall, he's had a hand in 20 goals - which is, brace yourselves, more than Pedro and Olivier Giroud!

Perhaps, he's underrated. Or even unsung. But no matter which way you slice it, Willian at least deserved to make the cut into the 32-man squad, if not start a match for the Canaries in the tournament proper.

#4 Marcelo

If Willian was underrated, then Marcelo was desperately underwhelming. Now it would be near blasphemy to castigate a player of his ilk any further. But the Brazilian was indeed well below his standards in Real Madrid's catastrophic campaign.

With only two assists in La Liga - he registered two more in the Copa Del Rey and Champions League combined - Marcelo's creative juices ran woefully dry. His only major contributions were back-to-back strikes against Levante and then Barcelona, albeit both ended in a Los Blancos humiliation.

Defensively too, he was found wanting on many occasions. He left gaping holes at the back and made several costly mistakes, one of which even handed the UEFA Super Cup title to Atletico Madrid.

Marcelo's season was also blighted by pesky muscle problems, missing 10 games in all competitions. So long story short, it has been a nightmarish season for him. And getting ostracised from Brazil's squad (he should've been expecting this) is the final straw.

Unless the Real Madrid fullback resurrects himself next season, it would be hard to ignore the nagging feeling that Marcelo is past his prime.

#3 Fabinho

What more could have Fabinho done to warrant a place in the squad?

Liverpool's midfield talisman, Fabinho had a fantastic season. He struggled to establish himself initially, but once clicked into gear, there was no stopping him.

He proved to be a great protective cover for the back with his battering ram role, muscling the ball away in key areas and also thwarting strikers from making inroads in the Liverpool half.

Fabinho also made Lionel Messi pay for his soft slap by bullying and rendering the Barcelona ace absolutely hapless in the historic 4-0 reverse. And yet, here we are, scratching our heads in bewilderment over his omission from Tite's squad.

Brazil are indeed spoilt for choice in that defensive midfield role with Manchester City's Fernandinho, Napoli's Allan and Real Madrid's Casemiro all making a case. But the latter has had a terrible season whereas Barcelona's Arthur, who has been called too, was only limited to a substitute role by Valverde and played majorly in only league cup games.

Tite shouldn't have had problems in selecting the Reds star over either of those two players.

#2 Vinicius Junior

Still only 18, Vinicius Junior was unlucky to miss out on the squad. The winger caught attention with his sublime skills on the ball and precocious ability to lay off pinpoint passes.

He proved to be the biggest thorn in Barcelona's flesh in the 3-0 loss at home, troubling the visitors with his scorching runs, eye-catching dribbles, and intelligent movements inside the area. All that were lacking were the finishing touches.

But Vinicius finished the season with a total of 11 assists to his name in all competitions, an incredible return for a youngster making his senior debut in Europe with a team like Los Blancos. And don't forget, he also spent a couple of weeks playing with the B-team in the Segunda Division!

A horrific knee injury sent his season to an early shower, unfortunately, sidelining him for two months. He missed nine games in the process and this has eventually cost him a potential call-up to what would have been his first international outing with the Seleccao.

Really lamentable. Hard luck, Vini!

#1 Lucas Moura

Was snubbing Moura, Tite's biggest mistake?

Following a slow start to life at Tottenham Hotspur last year, Moura hit the throttle this term. The Brazilian winger struck 15 times in all competitions in 37 starts and stepped up to the plate during the injury-enforced absence of Harry Kane.

Cast your mind back by just 10 days when Spurs were on course to become the next big scalp to fall to the exuberant Ajax side in the Champions League. Three-nil down on aggregate and only 35 minutes left on the clock, Pochettino and co.'s European fortunes hanged by the balance.

But Moura took the initiative upon himself and unbelievably scored a hat-trick to put the Lillywhites into their first ever Champions League final.

If only Tite could have taken a note of this while whittling down his squad. The Seleccao manager instead went with Ajax's David Neres for the right-wing role, who although had a good season himself, remains an untested quantity in the international football circuit.

Tite can only hope his decision won't backfire eventually.