Brazil are chasing their first World Cup triumph in two decades in Qatar with 26 men tasked with getting them there.
The South American giants went into the 2022 tournament as the top-ranked team in the world and many of the names on the list of coach Tite are household names, playing for some of the biggest club teams in the world.
But the fact remains that the lengthy World Cup drought will weigh on the team given the expectations back home as they go searching for a sixth World Cup title.
They were also unsuccessful in the most recent Copa America, placing more pressure on a team with already high expectations.
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Brazil World Cup squad
Tite named his final 26-man squad on Monday, November 7, seven days ahead of the FIFA-imposed deadline of November 14.
The surprise name on the list is 39-year-old Dani Alves, who didn’t have the best of seasons with Pumas UNAM in Mexico.
He is Danilo’s backup at right-back and he was preferred over Tottenham’s Emerson Royal. Alves will be among the oldest players in World Cup history in Qatar.
Here’s the final 26-man list. Caps and stats are correct ahead of the start of Qatar 2022.
MORE: Why did Brazil call up 39-year-old Dani Alves?
| Position | No. | Player | Club | Age | Caps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GK | 1 | Alisson | Liverpool (ENG) | 30 | 56 |
| GK | 23 | Ederson | Manchester City (ENG) | 29 | 18 |
| GK | 12 | Weverton | Palmeiras (BRA) | 34 | 11 |
| DEF | 4 | Marquinhos | PSG (FRA) | 28 | 70 |
| DEF | 14 | Eder Militao | Real Madrid (SPA) | 24 | 23 |
| DEF | 3 | Thiago Silva | Chelsea (ENG) | 38 | 108 |
| DEF | 2 | Danilo | Juventus (ITA) | 31 | 46 |
| DEF | 16 | Alex Telles | Sevilla (SPA) | 29 | 7 |
| DEF | 13 | Dani Alves | Pumas UNAM (MEX) | 39 | 125 |
| DEF | 6 | Alex Sandro | Juventus (ITA) | 31 | 37 |
| DEF | 24 | Bremer | Juventus (ITA) | 25 | 1 |
| MID | 15 | Fabinho | Liverpool (ENG) | 29 | 28 |
| MID | 5 | Casemiro | Manchester United (ENG) | 30 | 64 |
| MID | 17 | Bruno Guimaraes | Newcastle United (ENG) | 24 | 8 |
| MID | 8 | Fred | Manchester United (ENG) | 29 | 27 |
| MID | 7 | Lucas Paqueta | West Ham (ENG) | 25 | 34 |
| MID | 22 | Everton Ribeiro | Flamengo (BRA) | 33 | 22 |
| FWD | 26 | Gabriel Martinelli | Arsenal (ENG) | 21 | 3 |
| FWD | 20 | Vinicius Jr. | Real Madrid (SPA) | 22 | 15 |
| FWD | 10 | Neymar | PSG (FRA) | 30 | 120 |
| FWD | 19 | Antony | Manchester United (ENG) | 22 | 10 |
| FWD | 21 | Rodrygo | Real Madrid (SPA) | 21 | 6 |
| FWD | 11 | Raphinha | Barcelona (SPA) | 25 | 10 |
| FWD | 9 | Richarlison | Tottenham (ENG) | 25 | 37 |
| FWD | 25 | Pedro | Flamengo (BRA) | 25 | 2 |
| FWD | 18 | Gabriel Jesus | Arsenal (ENG) | 25 | 56 |
The most notable absences from the final list were:
- Roberto Firmino (Liverpool)
- Gabriel (Arsenal)
- Gabriel Barbosa (Flamengo)
- Renan Lodi (Nottingham Forest)
- Matheus Cunha (Atletico Madrid)
- Philippe Coutinho (Aston Villa)
- Emerson Royal (Tottenham Hotspur)
- Gerson (Marseille)
- Luiz Henrique (Real Betis)
- Rodinei (Flamengo)
MORE: Explaining the players snubbed by Tite in Brazil’s final 26-man squad
Reports in Brazil indicated in advance that Philippe Coutinho had picked up a right thigh injury that would keep him out for six weeks, thus forcing him to miss out on the World Cup, though his club form may have been enough given his subpar start to 2022/23 with Aston Villa.
In the end, regardless of whether it was form or fitness, there was no place for the former Liverpool and Barcelona man, but Tite is clearly confident that he has enough talent in his squad to go all the way, as Brazil seek to extend their record as the nation with the most World Cup wins with five.
Here is the reaction of a few players who were watching Tite’s announcement live: PSG’s Neymar, Manchester United’s Antony, Tottenham’s Richarlison and Newcastle’s Bruno Guimaraes:
Por vocês!!! Obrigado, meu Deus!! Obrigado todo mundo… amigos, família, mãe, pai, irmãos!! Amo vocês!!! Emoção demais!! ???? @CBF_Futebol pic.twitter.com/Da6aJkkoDx
— Antony Santos (@antony00) November 7, 2022
E a alegria do @richarlison97 com a convocação? ?
Vai ter Pombo na Copa do Mundo! ⚽ pic.twitter.com/R6agMbvq7V
— GOAL Brasil (@GoalBR) November 7, 2022
O momento em que Bruno Guimarães, com o filho no colo e ao lado da família, recebe a notícia da convocação para a Copa do Mundo. pic.twitter.com/42eYwfuHV0
— Gustavo Hofman (@gustavohofman) November 7, 2022
MAIS UMA COPA PRO NEY! ??? Essa foi a reação do nosso camisa 10 ao saber que estará no Qatar. Essa não precisava ser adivinha pra saber, né? ? #SeleçãoBrasileira pic.twitter.com/ziIidFA8qz
— TNT Sports BR (@TNTSportsBR) November 7, 2022
WORLD CUP 2022 SELECTED SQUADS:
Australia | Argentina | Belgium | Brazil | Cameroon
Canada | Costa Rica | Croatia | Denmark | England
France | Germany | Ghana | Iran | Japan | Mexico
Netherlands | Poland | Portugal | Qatar | Senegal
Serbia | Spain | Switzerland | Uruguay | USA | Wales
Brazil national team stars, strengths & weaknesses
Having entered the Qatar finals on a seven-game winning run, Brazil have found form at the perfect time for the 2022 World Cup.
They are among the leading contenders to win the tournament, and expectations will be sky high back at home after their path through the group stages.
Stars
Big names don’t get much bigger than Neymar and the PSG attacker headed into the World Cup injury free and in fine form at club level.
This current Brazil team also aren’t short of Premier League stars, with the likes of Gabriel Jesus and Richarlison — although the Arsenal man was ruled out of the tournament after sustaining an injury. A recent Richarlison injury has not keep him out of Qatar, and indeed he lit up the group stages with one of the goals of the tournament before dancing his way through the knockouts, but Aston Villa’s Coutinho was not as fortunate to make the final cut.
MORE: All about Brazil’s Group G opponents at the World Cup
Strengths
A key element of any successful Brazilian side is the attack, and they won’t be lacking in this area for the 2022 World Cup.
Tite has his star-studded side playing some great attacking football and they scored three or more goals in six of their last seven matches leading up to the tournament. Those strikes were shared around too, with no single player carrying Brazil in the final third.
Weaknesses
As with most attack-minded teams, defence inevitably becomes an area of concern and this is the case for Brazil. A lack of pace in their backline leaves them vulnerable to counter-attacks, particularly when their full-backs are caught out of position. (The call-up of Juventus defender Bremer should help this area provided he sees the field.)
Another cause for concern is their recent World Cup record, with Brazil knocked out in the quarterfinals in 2018 and infamously beaten 7-1 by Germany in the 2014 semifinals. Those results could see doubt once again creep in as they chase redemption in Qatar.
pic.twitter.com/Zqz2fcGEAH
— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) July 8, 2021
Can Brazil replace players on World Cup roster?
Once the final 26-man roster is official, participating teams at the World Cup could only make changes before the first game of the tournament, and only in the case of extraordinary circumstances.
According to the official tournament rules, “a player listed on the final list may only be replaced in the event of serious injury or illness up until 24 hours before the start of his team’s first match.”