All the latest World Cup news with 9 days to go to the start of the tournament
Lippi chooses Quagliarella
ITALY:AC Milan striker Marco Borriello and Villarreal forward Giuseppe Rossi were left out of Italy's 23-man squad with coach Marcello Lippi surprising pundits by choosing Napoli striker Fabio Quagliarella.
Goalkeeper Salvatore Sirigu, defender Mattia Cassani and midfielder Andrea Cossu were the other players from a provisional 28-man squad to miss out.
Winger Mauro Camoranesi, part of the team that triumphed in the 2006 tournament, was included on the Italian soccer federation’s squad list despite pulling out of altitude training in the Alps on Tuesday with a knee injury.
Low leaves out Beck
GERMANY:coach Joachim Low has left Andreas Beck out of his final squad. The Hoffenheim full-back missed out as Low reduced his party for South Africa from 24 to 23 yesterday. The coach had already seen his provisional squad reduced by injuries to Michael Ballack, Christian Trasch and Heiko Westermann.
The 23-year-old was informed of the decision by Low earlier yesterday and was told he should remain on standby to fly out to South Africa in case Germany pick up any more injuries in tomorrow’s final warm-up game against Bosnia-Herzegovina in Frankfurt.
Dos Santos may leave
MEXICO:Giovani Dos Santos is considering quitting Mexico's squad following the omission of his brother Jonathan, according to the players' father. Jonathan was left out of coach Javier Aguirre's final 23-man party yesterday, prompting a furious reaction from his father, Zizinho, himself a former professional player in South America.
And Zizinho hinted Tottenham midfielder Giovani was now considering his future. “Gio is very hurt and he wants to be at home with us,” said Zizinho.
McCarthy out of SA squad
SOUTH AFRICA:All-time leading scorer Benni McCarthy was one of five players cut from the World Cup hosts squad yesterday as coach Carlos Alberto Parreira settled on his 23 players for the tournament.
The decision to ditch McCarthy was a major surprise but follows criticism concerning the forwards fitness. Parreira also dropped defender Bryce Moon and goalkeeper Rowen Fernandez.
Eriksson goes on the attack
IVORY COAST:Sven-Goran Eriksson has named an attacking squad including six strikers for the World Cup. Chelsea duo Didier Drogba and Salomon Kalou, Aruna Dindane, Seydou Doumbia, Gervinho and Emmanuel Kone have all made the cut.
The seven players who have been omitted are goalkeeper Vincent Angban, West Brom defender Abdoulaye Meite, midfielders Gilles Yapi Yapo and Emerse Fae, and forwards Bakari Kone, Kanga Akale and Lassina.
Notable names who have made it to South Africa include defenders Emmanuel Eboue and Kolo Toure and midfield duo Didier Zokora and Yaya Toure.
Everton concern over Anichebe
NIGERIA:Everton have taken issue with Nigeria over the omission of Victor Anichebe from their World Cup squad, claiming the striker's injury is not serious. The club say he has only a bruised shin, not a "cracked chin" as initially reported.
Anichebe (22) was one of the most notable omissions when Swedish boss Lars Lagerback named his final 23-man party. Everton are furious at what they see as misinformation while Anichebe is devastated at not making it to South Africa. He was selected as the man of the match in the friendly against Saudi Arabia but did not feature against Colombia on Sunday in Nigeria’s final warm-up match.
Skrtel picked
SLOVAKIA:Coach Vladimir Weiss has picked Liverpool defender Martin Skrtel as he continues his recovery from a foot injury, while strike duo Filip Holosko of Besiktas and Robert Vittek of Lille are both involved after coming back from a broken leg and a knee problem respectively.
For a complete list of all the World Cup 2010 squads go to http://www.irishtimes.com/sports/soccer/
