Rio de Janeiro Aug 28 (IANS) Brazil football team coach Tite has not ruled out handing Philippe Coutinho a starting berth in Thursday s World Cup qualifier against Ecuador despite the midfielder s lack of recent playing time.
The 25-year-old has missed Liverpool s first three English Premier League (EPL) matches of the season after he submitted a transfer request amid interest from Barcelona reports Xinhua news agency.
"We are going to choose the best team we have at our disposal " Tite told reporters on Sunday when asked whether Coutinho would play against Ecuador.
Brazil who have already qualified for next year s World Cup in Russia lead the South American zone qualifying standings with 33 points from 14 matches.
Thursday s match in Porto Alegre will be followed by another qualifier against Colombia in Barranquilla five days later.
--IANS
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