With Raphinha out; Who should Diniz call up for the national team? – 01/10/2023 – The World Is a Ball

Starting the Brazilian team in the matches against Bolivia and Peru in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers last month, striker Raphinha suffered an injury on Friday (29), in the Barcelona game.

The forecast is that he will be sidelined for around a month, then he should be cut soon by Brazil’s interim coach, Fernando Diniz, who will simultaneously announce the replacement for this month’s games against Venezuela and Uruguay, also in the Qualifiers.

Diniz may choose to call up someone who is not a striker, but the most likely option is to call up a player who plays up front. If this happens, what is the best option?

It should be noted that this forward to be called up will occupy a place on the bench, as the lineup to face the Venezuelans must have, barring unforeseen events, an offensive line formed by Neymar, Rodrygo, Richarlison and Vinicius Junior.

Thus, Diniz has a range of options to make up the group, and it would be interesting to give an opportunity to a young man to show his talent in training and, eventually, have a chance to join these matches.

If I were there, I would call Marcos Leonardo, 20, who has nine goals and is one of the top scorers in the Brazilian Championship (he tries to save Santos from relegation), or Endrick, 17, the revelation from Palmeiras (already negotiated with Real Madrid) who has everything to become the biggest name in national football in the years to come.

It would be a way of giving space to someone of young age and great potential to grow and bring joy to the team in the not-distant future.

Vitor Roque, 18, from Athletico-PR (already traded with Barcelona), is ruled out because he has an ankle injury and will be out of action for a long period of time.

Someone who is not old enough and could return to the Canarian squad is Pedro, 26, from Flamengo, a center forward who was with Brazil in the Qatar Cup last year.

Flamengo fans, however, would like to see, more than Pedro, Bruno Henrique with the yellow shirt. Me too, as I consider him a great player. However, age (32) does not contribute – ditto for Tiquinho (32), the Brazilian’s top scorer (13 goals), and Hulk (37), from Atlético-MG.

I understand that there is a certain restriction on players who exceed the 30-year-old mark, as it is considered that physically they may not be able to handle the pressure – especially full-backs, midfielders and forwards.

Among the front players called up by Diniz for this month’s games, the oldest is Neymar (31).

I mentioned the homemade alternatives for Raphinha’s position. And out? Is there anyone who deserves it? They even have, but they are unlikely to be considered.

I haven’t been following the Saudi Championship, which already had Cristiano Ronaldo and gained the spotlight with the arrival of famous names like Neymar, Benzema and Sadio Mané.

On a sports program on Transamérica radio, one of the participants (I don’t remember who it was) commented that Anderson Talisca, 29, from Al Nassr (same team as CR7), has been playing too much.

Also in Sauditão, who has performed well is Malcom (ex-Corinthians), 26, who plays for Al Hilal (same team as Neymar) and was called up by the team’s previous interim, Ramon Menezes.

Anyone younger?

João Pedro, 22, ex-Fluminense, plays in England and stood out for Watford, from 2020 until this year, when he transferred to Brighton, a small team that is on the rise in the Premier League.

Still focusing on the English Championship, there is Gabriel Martinelli, 22, from Arsenal, called up for the matches against Bolivia and Peru. However, he is still recovering from a muscle injury.

And in Spain there is Savinho, 19, former Galo and one of the highlights of the modest Girona, third in the League, behind only Real Madrid and Barcelona. Left-handed, he plays exactly like Raphinha, on the right of the attack.

No chance of having your name pronounced by Diniz?

Pernambuco’s Anderson Lopes, 29, 19 goals in 29 matches for Yokohama Marinos (Japan), and Tiago Orobó, 29, 14 goals in 30 matches for Daejeon (South Korea); Klauss, from Santa Catarina, 26, 10 goals in 17 games for St. Louis (USA); and São Paulo native Caio Lucas, 29, 3 goals in 4 matches for Sharjah (United Arab Emirates).