Allan earns first Brazil call-up, Paulinho returns

After impressing Brazil assistant Sylvinho with his performances under Maurizio Sarri at Napoli, Allan has been called up by Tite.

Napoli midfielder Allan

Napoli midfielder Allan has been handed his maiden call-up to the Brazil squad, while Paulinho has returned for the first time since the World Cup.

Allan was part of Brazil's Under-20 World Cup-winning squad of 2011 and left Vasco da Gama for Udinese the following year, establishing himself as a key player and earning a move to Napoli.

Tite joked that his assistant Sylvinho had pressured him in to selecting the midfielder, before later declaring the 27-year-old was selected for the friendlies against Uruguay and Cameroon in November on merit.

"We have to monitor players who appear in Europe," said Sylvinho, who was impressed with Allan's displays under Maurizio Sarri. "We always need to do constant monitoring.

"As for Allan, he has been in Europe for seven years. He played with Sarri and had a very important function to connect the play. He's a dynamic player and has adapted very well to this function.

"Sarri had a model that is very similar to ours. With Ancelotti it has changed a bit, but for us it has not."

Paulinho has been recalled after scoring 11 goals in 15 Chinese Super League matches since returning to Guangzhou Evergrande from Barcelona.

Marcelo, Willian and Douglas also return after missing the victories over Saudi Arabia and Argentina in October, while Lucas Moura and Malcom are among those to miss out.

Tite has again selected a young third-choice goalkeeper Gabriel Brazao, whose Cruzeiro team-mate Dede is the only domestic-based first-team player included due to the Campeonato Brasileiro continuing through the international window.

 

Brazil squad:

Alisson (Liverpool), Gabriel Brazao (Cruzeiro), Ederson (Manchester City); Danilo (Manchester City), Dede (Cruzeiro), Fabinho (Liverpool), Filipe Luis (Atletico Madrid), Marcelo (Real Madrid), Marquinhos (Paris Saint-Germain), Pablo (Bordeaux), Miranda (Inter); Allan (Napoli), Arthur (Barcelona), Casemiro (Real Madrid), Paulinho (Guangzhou Evergrande), Philippe Coutinho (Barcelona), Wallace (Hannover); Douglas Costa (Juventus), Roberto Firmino (Liverpool), Gabriel Jesus (Manchester City), Neymar (Paris Saint-Germain), Richarlison (Everton), Willian (Chelsea).