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Rising Liverpool star Philippe Coutinho has caught the attention of Brazilian national team manager Dunga, who has chosen to select the midfielder in his 23-man squad for two friendlies later this month.
After being snubbed from Brazil's World Cup squad last summer, Coutinho is not taking the decision lightly.
"Every time I see my name on the Brazil list I feel very happy," he said to Liverpool's official website. "It is always as if it were happening for the first time. Liverpool have been playing very well and it has been a very happy moment for me."
Even though Coutinho has played brilliantly for Liverpool this season, his last four appearances for Brazil were as a substitute. One would think that his role will soon expand given his recent form, but even if he continues to come off the bench he will happy to be included in the team.
"My objective is to always be playing and starting games - but being part of this squad is in itself a massive satisfaction for me," he said. "It's a great honour to wear my country's national jersey. Brazil have lots of quality players and while it's difficult to secure a regular place, my goal is to be always fighting for my place on the team."
For Liverpool fans, it's often bittersweet when the team's best players break into their national team squads. On one hand it is thrilling to see fan favorites achieve their dreams for their countries, but there's always the concern of injury or fatigue with midseason international duty.
However, in the case of Coutinho it's not difficult to feel pure happiness for a man who has had to work so hard and overcome so many setbacks in his quest to become a fixture in his national team squad.
