Neymar will be looking to bring home Olympic gold on his home soil, but he’ll have to do so without his starting goalkeeper.
38-year-old Fernando Prass, one of the three players over the age of 23 allowed on the roster, was ruled out for the rest of the tournament after fracturing his elbow.
Prass injured his elbow last Monday, and after recovering from his initial injury, was set to play in Brazil’s pre-tournament friendly against Japan on Saturday. However, he re-injured it in pre-match warmups, and further tests showed the break.
“I gave my best to make my dream of playing for the national team come true, but unfortunately it’s not going to happen this time,” Prass said via Twitter on Saturday. “I’ll recover and return even stronger to play for Palmeiras and hopefully for the national team again.”
Yet to make an appearance for the national team, Prass has been with Brazilian club Palmeiras since arriving in 2013 from Vasco de Gama. He was replaced in the Japan friendly by 22-year-old Uilson, while head coach Rogerio Micale has not announced who will replace Prass both in the roster and in the starting lineup.
Brazil did not make its preliminary roster - which Micale will use to pick a replacement - public, but the Associated Press reports that the available choices are Alisson of Roma, Jordi of Vasco da Gama and Jean of Bahia. The 23-year-old Alisson would be the likely favorite based on experience, having made 56 appearances for Internacional before moving to Roma earlier this month.