Sao Paulo, Brazil (SportsNetwork.com) - Brazil head coach Luiz Felipe Scolari named his 23-man roster for this summer's World Cup on Wednesday, and he decided to leave out veteran midfielder Kaka.
The 32-year-old has totaled seven goals and four assists in Serie A for AC Milan this season, but after making the roster for Brazil's last three World Cup appearances, Scolari has decided to leave him off the team.
Of the 23 players who will be representing the host nation at the World Cup, 17 were members of the team that captured the Confederations Cup last summer, with young stars such as Neymar and Oscar joining veteran players like Dani Alves, David Luiz, Thiago Silva and Hulk in a balanced side.
In addition to Kaka, Scolari also left off both Ronaldinho and Robinho as expected.
Brazil is in Group A along with Croatia, Mexico and Cameroon and will open the competition against Croatia on June 12.
The following is the complete 23-man roster for Brazil:
Goalkeepers: Julio Cesar (Toronto FC), Jefferson (Botafogo), Victor (Atletico Mineiro).
Defenders: David Luiz (Chelsea), Dante (Bayern Munich), Thiago Silva (Paris Saint-Germain), Henrique (Napoli), Maicon (Roma), Dani Alves (Barcelona), Marcelo (Real Madrid), Maxwell (Paris Saint-Germain).
Midfielders: Luiz Gustavo (Wolfsburg), Paulinho (Tottenham), Fernandinho (Manchester City), Ramires (Chelsea), Oscar (Chelsea), Willian (Chelsea), Hernanes (Inter Milan).
Strikers: Hulk (Zenit St. Petersburg), Bernard (Shakhtar Donetsk), Neymar (Barcelona), Jo (Atletico Mineiro), Fred (Fluminense).
[SportsNetwork.com]
