ROME, DE JANEIRO: The 39-year-old defender Dani Alves has been selected by Brazil manager Tite for the FIFA World Cup in Qatar, the South American nation's football federation said on Monday.

Neymar of Paris Saint-Germain, Rodrygo and Vinicius Junior of Real Madrid, as well as veteran Chelsea center-back Thiago Silva, are all on the 26-man roster.

The Aston Villa midfielder Philippe Coutinho, however, was left out after hurting his thigh during practise last week. Roberto Firmino, a forward for Premier League club Liverpool, was also absent despite having a strong start to the year.

Casemiro, Antony, and Fred of Manchester United, as well as Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli of Arsenal, were among the 12 Premier League players that Tite called up.
Alves was selected even though he has only appeared in 12 games for Mexican club Pumas this year and is only six months away from turning 40.
Tite said at a press conference that Daniel Alves' criteria was the same as everyone else's. It honours each person's technical proficiency, level of physical fitness, and mental fortitude. Alves will surpass Djalma Santos, who was 37 when he joined the Selecao team for the 1966 tournament in England, as the oldest player to represent Brazil at the World Cup.

Since making his international debut in 2006, Alves has 119 caps. He participated in the 2010 and 2014 World Cups, but due to a knee injury, he was unable to attend the 2018 World Cup in Russia. Since the Liga MX regular season ended in early October, the right-back has been working out with his former team Barcelona.

Brazil will compete in the World Cup, which will take place from November 20 to December 18, in the same group as Serbia, Switzerland, and Cameroon. Brazilian team Alisson (Liverpool), Ederson (Manchester City), and Weverton are the goalkeepers (Palmeiras).

Defenders include Bremer from Juventus, Eder Militao from Real Madrid, Marquinhos from PSG, Thiago Silva from Chelsea, Danilo from Juventus, Dani Alves from Pumas, Alex Sandro from Juventus, and Alex Telles from Juventus (Sevilla).

Midfielders: Lucas Paqueta (Manchester United), Casemiro (Manchester United), Fabinho (Liverpool), Everton Ribeiro (Flamengo), and Bruno Guimaraes (Newcastle) (West Ham).

Forwards: Richarlison (Tottenham), Rodrygo (Real Madrid), Vinicius Junior, Pedro (Flamengo), Gabriel Jesus (Arsenal), Gabriel Martinelli (Arsenal), Neymar (PSG), and Raphinha (Barcelona) (Real Madrid).

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