da bwin：
da heads bet： With the world cup just 15 days away, excitement from fans across the globe continues to grow immensely.
We as fans will be witnessing a whole host of great footballers showcasing their talents from June 11th. However, some of the worlds most iconic and up-and-coming footballers will be watching the greatest tournament in football from the comfort of their own homes, just like the rest of us.
Many fans across the world (along with me) will be wondering how these stars were omitted from their respective national squads.
Here are 10 world-class talents (in alphabetical order) that will not be travelling to South Africa this summer:
Adriano (Brazil)
Dunga has stated that he wants to adopt a ‘safety-first’ approach this summer in the world cup (by including more midfielders than forwards). This is a fair claim from the Brazil coach, but surely Adriano should have been preferred over Wolfsburg’s Grafite?
Adriano has 48 caps for Brazil to date and has netted 27 times. However, Grafite has only been capped twice for his country and only one goal to his name, so why Dunga has left Adriano out of the world cup squad is a mind boggler.
The powerful 28-year-old had been in Dunga’s plans throughout the qualifying campaign but it is believed that the striker has had problems off-field, and as a result was not included in the squad. If this is the case, then many fans and the player himself will feel that football would be the best remedy. Brazil will miss his brute strength and deadly strike that’s for sure.
Alexandre Pato (Brazil)
One of the upcoming stars in world football and we will not be seeing him in South Africa, why? Sometimes you have to question the manager’s decisions because they are just plain stupid. Pato should have definitely been on the plane to South Africa this summer no questions asked. The 20-year-old striker had a great season for Milan, appearing 23 times in Serie A and netting 12 goals along the way.
His international career stands at 8 caps with 1 goal at the moment, not a great record by any means, but you have to take the player’s age into consideration as well. The striker possesses great pace, agility and most importantly an eye for goal, and many will agree that Pato is an all round better forward than Grafite and Nilmar.
Esteban Cambiasso (Argentina)
The 29-year-old tenacious midfielder has been left out in the cold by the wacky Diego Maradona, and for the life of me can’t think why.
The Argentine had a sensational season for Inter as he helped his side lift an unprecedented treble for the Italian giants…so why did Maradona decide not to pick him to take part in the world cup this summer? This is a question only the coach can answer. The inclusion of Mario Bolatti and especially the 35-year-old Juan Sebastian Veron would have raised a few eyebrows.
Cambiasso is a highly rated midfielder that will give absolutely everything for club and country, so to not see his name in the Argentinean squad will come as a major shock to many football fans around the world.
Find out out the next 4 stars on the list on page 2
Francesco Totti (Italy)
A complete nutcase but the Italian is still a top player. Although Totti decided to call it a day on his international career in 2006, the 33-year-old would have come out of it had he’d been recalled this summer. Sadly for him, the Italian boss Marcello Lippi has decided against this.
Totti had one of his best seasons of his career in Rome. The striker appeared 31 times in all competitions for Roma and managed to net 25 times. With a season he’s produced it’s very surprising that Lippi has not brought ‘the little gold boy’ out of international retirement this summer.
The forward left the international scene with 58 caps and 9 goals, but many will say he should have more to his name. Totti should have been picked for his experience and it’s clear to see that he’s still a danger even at the age of 33.
Javier Zanetti (Argentina)
Along with Cambiasso, the veteran full-back lifted the treble with Inter Milan this season, so his omission is very baffling to me and a number of fans across the globe.
The 36-year-old Argentine is an absolute legend, plain and simple. The Inter man can still keep up with the pace of today’s game, is very experienced and above all a born leader.
Zanetti is Argentina’s most capped player in their history with a staggering 136 games under his belt (he also has 5 goals at international level). Many will not understand the omission of the versatile defender and will believe that this is a bad mistake by Maradona.
Karim Benzema (France)
Possibly one of the most dangerous strikers in the game, yet the French national manager has decided to leave him at home this summer.
Granted Benzema never shined for Real Madrid this season, but to drop the 22-year-old is surely an act of pure madness from the strange Raymond Domenech. Benzema didn’t play as much as he would have hoped in his first year in Spain, but nonetheless when the striker does play he poses a major threat to the oppositions defence.
Fans across the world may feel that the striker didn’t deserve a place in the 30-man provisional squad, this maybe true, but to not take a young talented striker that can potentially win you the world cup is criminal (the French won’t be too happy that’s for sure). Mark my words, France will definitely suffer as a result of this decision…just wait and see.
Luca Toni (Italy)
Although not the greatest striker in the world, Toni has proven that he can bag some goals for club and country.
The 6’ 5’’ Bayern Munich forward is Italy’s current joint top goal scorer (along with Gilardino) with 16. Toni is also Italy’s most capped forward out there with 47 games for Italy, so why has Lippi decided against taking him to South Africa? The inclusion of Marco Borriello is one to scratch your head with. The A.C Milan forward only has 4 caps and with that no goals, so this adds even more confusion to the exclusion of Luca Toni
Toni may not be the most mobile of strikers out there and his age (33 years old) may have swayed Lippi’s decision, but the striker’s height and strength offers a different dimension to the Italians game. This omission is a very surprising one.
Finally, continue to page 3 to see the last 3 players on the list
Marcelo (Brazil)
Marcelo is actually in the reserves and maybe included into the world cup squad should a player be ruled out by injury, but shouldn’t the 22-year-old left-back be in there already?
This is another one of Dunga’s strange choices that may bamboozle a few. The Real Madrid man has been ever present for the Galactico’s this season and has established himself as first choice left back for the past three years at the club.
Some fans may say that Marcelo is the new ‘Roberto Carlos’, he certainly has the pace and attacking fortitude of the legendary left-back, but has years to become what Carlos was. Nonetheless, Marcelo is one of the best in his position and despite only 6 caps for his country so far, the left-back should have definitely been included in the Brazil squad this summer.
Ronaldinho (Brazil)
You can only laugh in disbelief with this one really. Yes, Ronaldinho may not be the same player as he used to be say 5 years ago, however, us as fans would have loved to seen the attacking midfielder perform on the biggest stage once again, right?
His dazzling skills are great to watch, and the Brazilian can produce moments of pure genius, so Dunga’s decision to leave him out of his world cup squad is bewildering to say the very least. The 30-year-old magician did have a fine season for Milan and performed consistently throughout the year for the Serie A club. Dunga has denied us seeing football pleasure by not taking Ronaldinho to South Africa, so on behalf of all of us Dunga we thank you.
Samir Nasri (France)
How, oh how, did the Arsenal man not make it into the French world cup squad this summer?
His pace, skill and technique would have been an interesting weapon for the French, yet somehow Domenech has dropped him from his plans, which is a really bizarre decision for me and maybe a few others.
The fact that the 22-year-old was snubbed for uncapped French players Mathieu Valbuena and Yann M’Vila adds to the perplexity of Nasri’s omission. Raymond Domenech may regret this decision when the tournament gets underway.
Follow me on Twitter – http://twitter.com/TMer4kl1