Serie A Stars Snubbed As World Cup Squads Chosen

With the provisional squads for the World Cup having been named, there have been a number of stars not selected. Some of these omissions were expected, but others not so.

The number of star players excluded is alarming and will only mean that this year's World Cup may not be the spectacle it has promised to be. What is also alarming about the star players that have not been chosen is the number that ply their trade in Italy's Serie A.

Serie A may not be the league it was once. There is no denying this. The world's best players are today found in either Spain or England.

However, the Serie A is still a highly difficult league to play in. It is not easy to succeed in Italy despite the fact that the league contains fewer stars than the EPL or La Liga. The reason for this is because Italian football is extremely rigorous tactically and has a strong focus on technical ability. Speed, strength and style are not considered important in Italy.

It is for this reason that the exclusions of Ronaldinho, Pato, Cambiasso and Zanetti, just to name a few, are most inexplicable. All these players have shown that they can succeed in Italy as they have become the stars of the Serie A today.

Furthermore, despite the plight of Calcio in recent years, Italian football has still provided three Champions League finalists in the last six seasons, the current season included.

Though the UEFA Coefficient Rankings will show that Italian football is on the decline, the fact is that Italian football is still one of the top three leagues in Europe and if Inter overcome Bayern on May 23rd, a top three league it will stay. This point seems to have been lost on many of the coaches heading to South Africa.

It is unfortunate that Ronaldinho, Pato, Zanetti and Cambiasso will not be on parade during football's biggest show in South Africa. Moreover, it is mystifying to see some of the names chosen ahead of these genuine stars.

For Brazil squad, Dunga has elected for Wolfsburg's Grafite and Villareal's Nilmar instead of Pato. Ronaldinho somehow misses out whilst the likes of Julio Baptista, Ramires and Elano are chosen.

For Argentina, Maradona has perplexingly chosen the likes of Gabriel Heinze, Ariel Garce and Championship division player Fabricio Colluccini ahead of Inter’s Javier Zanetti. With Inter on course for a treble and with Zanetti enjoying another unbelievably consistent season, this decision by Maradona is inconceivable.

Another Inter star, Esteban Cambiasso, has also had a great season and is one of the reasons why Inter have made it to the final after beating Barcelona, yet he has not made the cut either. Instead, Maradona has elected Juan Mercier of Argentinos Juniors, Jose Sosa who also plays in Argentina, and Jesus Datolo.

There are a few notable other stars of Serie A who will also miss out.

Another Inter midfielder, the Brazilian Thiago Motta, can also feel aggrieved at his exclusion. Motta has enjoyed a solid season but will miss out as the  likes of Gilberto Silva of Panathinaikos and Kleberson, who was a European flop and is now back in the Brazilian league, are chosen instead.

Phillipe Mexes is another noteworthy exclusion. However, the decision by Domenech not to include the Roma stopper comes as no surprise considering the French coach’s well known aversion to all things Italian.

It is not only Dunga, Domenech and Maradona that have snubbed the best players of Serie A. Azzurri coach Marcello Lippi has also done a fine job in excluding the best players from Italy’s top division.

Perhaps the two best Italian players of the season, Fabrizio Miccoli and Antonio Cassano, have not been chosen by Lippi. In addition, the Italian coach has not included Inter’s young prodigal attacker Mario Balotelli.

The absence of these stars of the Serie A at the World Cup is most unfortunate and undeserving. Calcio may not be in the greatest shape at the moment, however, it is not because of the state of Italian football that so few of its stars have been selected.

The aforementioned players that have been excluded all deserved better from their national team coaches. They’re exclusion is unjust. Therefore it has nothing to do about the state of Calcio why so few of its stars will be in South Africa. Rather, it is simply due to some astonishing decisions by the national team coaches.