By Fernando Kallas
TURIN (Reuters) – Brazil defender Marquinhos missed training on Tuesday with an undisclosed injury that also ruled him out of his club side Paris St Germain’s 5-0 win over Auxerre on Sunday.
With just nine days to go until Brazil’s opening World Cup match against Serbia, the defender, a certain first-choice starter under coach Tite, underwent physiotherapy while the rest of his team mates worked on the pitch at Juventus’s facilities in Turin.
Marquinhos later joined the group but only for a light jog at the end of the session. According to Brazil staff, there is no concern about his availability for the World Cup.
PSG had described the injury as “muscular discomfort” prior to the game against Auxerre, the final Ligue 1 match before the World Cup break.
His PSG team mate, Neymar, took part after missing Brazil’s first training session on Monday, having arrived late due to problems with his flight from Paris to Turin, where Brazil are holding a five-day camp before flying to Doha on Saturday.
Only 14 players had participated in on-field training on Monday, as those who played for their clubs over the weekend worked in the gym.
On Tuesday, however, Tite ran intense drills working on keeping possession in tight spaces involving the entire squad, except Marquinhos, for a little over an hour.
Juventus defender Danilo said that the players were tired due to European soccer’s tight schedule caused by having a World Cup in mid-season.
He added that the main focus of Brazil’s technical staff in the first two days in Turin has been to evaluate the physical condition of the players and manage the activity load.
“I heard many times the theory that the players would arrive in peak conditions because of a World Cup in November but we are all worn out because of the schedule,” Danilo told a news conference on Tuesday.
“We are not used to playing every three or four days and it’s important to rest the next few days.
“That’s why I think it was a great decision to hold a training camp in Europe, close to where most of the players live, a short trip, no time or weather adaptation.
“It will be an advantage to focus on health so we can arrive in the best shape possible in Qatar.”
Brazil open their World Cup Group G campaign against Serbia on Nov. 24 before facing Switzerland and Cameroon.
(Reporting by Fernando Kallas; Editing by Toby Davis)
