Ronaldinho cut from Brazil Olympic squad

RIO DE JANEIRO - Brazil coach Mano Menezes has excluded Ronaldinho from a 35-man squad for the London Olympics.

The two-time FIFA world player of the year had been included in Menezes' initial list of 52 announced in March but was subsequently overlooked for Brazil's series of friendlies in Germany and the United States.

Last week Menezes openly criticized the 32-year-old saying his career was being cut short by "external factors".

The comment was a thinly veiled reference to Ronaldinho's alleged disciplinary problems at Flamengo, the club he quit and sued last week for millions of dollars in unpaid wages.

The squad, which will be trimmed to 18 on July 6, includes Barcelona defender Daniel Alves who is reportedly making good recovery from a broken collarbone suffered last month.

Menezes also cut Inter Milan goalkeeper Julio Cesar, who was Brazil's first-choice in goal at the 2010 World Cup.

Squad:

Goalkeepers: Diego Alves (Valencia), Gabriel (Milan), Jefferson(Botafogo), Neto (Fiorentina), Rafael Cabral (Santos), Renan Ribeiro(Atletico-MG).

Defenders: Alex Sandro (Porto), Daniel Alves (Barcelona), Danilo(Porto), Fagner (Vasco), Marcelo (Real Madrid), Rafael (Manchester United), Lucas Mendes (Coritiba), Bruno Uvini (Sao Paulo), David Luiz(Chelsea), Dede (Vasco), Juan (Inter de Milao), Marquinhos(Corinthians), Thiago Silva (Milan).

Midfielders: Casemiro (Sao Paulo), Fernando (Gremio), Romulo (Vasco),Sandro (Tottenham), Douglas Costa (Shakhtar Donetsk), Paulo Henrique Ganso (Santos), Giuliano (Dnipro), Lucas (Sao Paulo), Oscar(Internacional), Philippe Coutinho (Espanyol).

Strikers: Alexandre Pato (Milan), Andre (Atletico-MG), Hulk (Porto),Leandro Damiao (Internacional), Neymar (Santos), Wellington Nem(Fluminense).