OPINION
Liverpool midfielder Fabinho will surely be feeling very frustrated after being left out of Brazil’s 23-man squad for the forthcoming Copa America finals.
Fabinho has enjoyed an impressive debut season with Liverpool, after joining Jurgen Klopp’s side from French side AS Monaco last summer, and the Brazilian has helped to add an extra bit of solidity to the Reds’ midfield, as well as improving their ball retention with his quality in possession.
However, Fabinho’s fellow Brazil and Liverpool team-mates Roberto Firmino and Alisson have both been named in Brazil coach Tite’s squad for the Copa America finals, which will be played in Brazil this summer, as confirmed by the nation’s official Twitter account.
Os convocados da #SeleçãoBrasileira para a Copa América em um só lugar!
Saiba os detalhes >> https://t.co/YWMGXZTpXq pic.twitter.com/xbsjizG8cn
— CBF Futebol (@CBF_Futebol) May 17, 2019
The inclusion of Firmino and Alisson will be of little consolation to Fabinho, who was also left of the Brazil squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia last summer, and the 25-year-old can consider himself unfortunate not to be named in Tite’s squad again.
Fabinho has featured in 40 games in all competitions for Liverpool this season, and he was the Reds’ third highest tackler in the Premier League this season with 59 [premierleague.com] and sixth highest passer, which highlights the impact he has had on Klopp’s midfield since his arrival from Monaco last summer.
However, despite the 25-year-old being an impressive performer in Liverpool’s challenges for both the Premier League title and the Champions League, he has missed out on the Brazil squad with the likes of Allan, Fernandinho, Lucas Paqueta, Philippe Coutinho, Arthur and Casemiro all included ahead of the midfielder.
Klopp will be hopeful that Fabinho can recover swiftly from the set-back of not being named in his countries’ squad for the Copa America, and produce one more excellent performance for Liverpool in the Champions League final against Tottenham.
Liverpool will be needing the influence of the Brazilian in their midfield for the Champions League final in Madrid, and if the 25-year-old can help his team-mates win the competition it will provide a little consolation to him missing out on the Copa America finals.
Brazil could well regret not selecting Fabinho, who would have offered some defensive solidity to their midfield, in their squad depending on what happens to them in the Copa America, which gets underway on June 14.
