Juventus full-back Sandro earns Brazil call-up

Rio de Janeiro Sep 23 (IANS) Juventus full-back Alex Sandro has been drafted into Brazil s national squad for World Cup qualifiers against Bolivia and Chile the Brazilian Football Confederation has announced.

The 26-year-old replaces Real Madrid left-back Marcelo who has been ruled out for the next month because of a hamstring injury reports Xinhua news agency.

"Real Madrid sent the results of his exams and after analyzing them we decided that he needed time to recover " Brazil team doctor Rodrigo Lasmar said on Friday.

Brazil already guaranteed a place in Russia next year lead the South American zone s CONMEBOL standings with 37 points from 16 matches.

The five-time World Cup winners will play Bolivia in La Paz on October 5 and Chile in Sao Paulo five days later.

--IANS
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