Rio de Janeiro, May 20 (IANS): Chelsea defender David Luiz has returned to Brazil's national squad for football friendlies against Argentina and Australia next month.
The 30-year-old has not represented the Selecao for more than a year but earned a recall after impressing coach Tite with his performances in Chelsea's English Premier League (EPL) title-winning campaign, reports Xinhua news agency.
Manchester City striker Gabriel Jesus was also included in Brazil's 24-man squad, having missed the team's World Cup qualifiers in March with a foot injury.
Barcelona star Neymar and Juventus right-back Daniel Alves were surprisingly left out, having been given a break after hectic seasons with their respective clubs.
"The emotional side of the game drains us ... the adrenaline is at a million miles per hour every single day, the players need mental rest," Tite said at a press conference.
"There is team-building and there is consolidation, but this is about construction at the moment."
Brazil will confront Argentina on June 9 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground before facing Australia at the same venue four days later.
As expected, China-based players Paulinho, Renato Augusto and Gil were among those named by Tite. New faces included uncapped Monaco centre-back Jemerson and Benfica goalkeeper Ederson.
Brazil squad:
Goalkeepers: Diego Alves (Valencia), Weverton (Atletico-PR), Ederson (Benfica).
Defenders: David Luiz (Chelsea), Gil (Shandong Luneng), Jemerson (Monaco), Rodrigo Caio (Sao Paulo), Thiago Silva (PSG), Alex Sandro (Juventus), Fagner (Corinthians), Filipe Luis (Atletico Madrid), Rafinha (Bayern).
Midfielders: Fernandinho (Manchester City), Giuliano (Zenit), Lucas Lima (Santos), Paulinho (Guangzhou Evergrande), Coutinho (Liverpool), Renato Augusto (Beijing Guoan), Rodriginho (Corinthians), Willian (Chelsea).
Forwards: Diego Souza (Sport), Douglas Costa (Bayern Munich), Gabriel Jesus (Manchester City), Taison (Shakhtar).