Berliner Tageblatt - Brazil tap Raphinha to replace injured Vinicius Junior

Vinicius, who limped off early in Madrid's 1-0 La Liga win against Celta Vigo on Friday, will reportedly be out for up to six weeks with a hamstring injury, taking him out of Brazil's qualifiers against Bolivia and Peru on September 8 and 12, respectively.

The Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) said coach Fernando Diniz had tapped Raphinha to replace the injured 23-year-old star.

Raphinha, 26, previously played for the "Selecao" at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, where the five-time champions were eliminated by Croatia in the quarter-finals.

He has had a complicated start to the season at Barcelona, getting sent off with a red card during their league debut against Getafe and missing the next two matches.

Vinicius's absence will leave 31-year-old Neymar, who arrived in Saudi Arabia this month to start a lucrative contract with Al-Hilal, to lead the attack as Brazil start their quest for a long-awaited sixth World Cup title.

However, the coach of his new club, Portugal's Jorge Jesus, recently raised doubts over Neymar's fitness for national team duty, as well, saying he had a minor injury.

D.Schneider--BTB