Brazil Announces Roster for Under 17 World Cup

Today the CBF announced the roster for the Under 17 World Cup. Brazil has won the U-17 World Cup three times, and will have a tremendous chance to do so again next month in Nigeria. The tournament starts October 24th with Brazil’s first match being that day against Japan. The group additionally features Mexico and Switzerland. The full schedule of matches can be found here.

The surprise on this squad is most notably the inclusion of Neymar, who has been compared heavily to Robinho. I thought he had a chance to be on the U-20 roster, which did not materialize, but he was put on this one, despite the fact it’s the middle of the club campaign in Brazil. He features for his club Santos frequently, but was nonetheless released for the World Cup.

Wellington, Dodô, and Philippe Coutinho are the other three players of note on this roster. Dodô and Coutinho’s rights are owned by Manchester United and Inter Milan respectively. Wellington was the star of the South American Under 17 tournament, and has been linked with several big clubs including Arsenal.

Roster:

Goleiros: Luís Guilherme (Botafogo), Alisson (Internacional) e André (Corinthians).

Zagueiros: Gerson (Grêmio), Sidimar (Atlético-MG), Romário Leiria (Internacional) e Guilherme (Atlético-PR)

Laterais: Crystian (Santos), Romário (Vitória) e Dodô (Corinthians).

Meio-campistas: Elivelton (Santos), Carlão (São Paulo), João Pedro (Atlético-MG), Wellington (Fluminense), Philippe Coutinho (Vasco), Zezinho (Juventude) e Neymar (Santos).

Atacantes: Willen (Vasco), Felipinho (Internacional), Geovani (Internacional) e Wellington Silva (Fluminense).