Shot From Distance 5.13.2010: 5 Who should be on World Cup Rosters, and 5 who shouldn't.

Now we know the provisional rosters for most of the power teams that are going to the World Cup. Managers have selected anywhere from 23 (the number they are allowed to take) to 30. The headache now for the likes of Fabio Capello, Vicente Del Bosque, Marcello Lippi, Dunga, and Diego Maradona is who to leave behind. After reading up on each of the rosters, there are suprising omissions, as well as surprise selections. Here is a rundown of who got screwed, and who should be lucky to be in a World Cup camp.

5 Players who should be on a Provisional World Cup Roster.

1. Esteban Cambiasso, Argentina: Diego Maradona seriously must not want Argentina to win the World Cup. Cambiasso is an engine room midfielder that would be a far more perfect fit for the Argentine setup than Javier Mascherano. Cambiasso organizes a midfield, connects with his defenders for compactness, and is not a ticking time bomb like Mascherano. Maradona could have had a Cambiasso-Mascherano holding midfield to do the dirty work, to free up the likes of Messi, Tevez, and Aguero to attack. Need more evidence? See the brilliant performance he turned in for his club, Inter, over Barcelona in the Champions League.
2. Joao Moutinho, Portugal: Club teammate Pedro Mendes gets in over him, as does an aging Deco. While the latter makes sense from an experience and leadership standpoint, I would have thought Moutinho would have been a good selection here. He's a versatile midfield player mostly known for his playmaking with Sporting Lisbon, and gave a decent account at Euro 2008 (had an assist in a group win over Turkey).
3. Antonio Nocerino, Italy: While many will be stewing over the omission of Francesco Totti, I thought Nocerino deserved a call-up. Lippi seems to be going straight 4-3-3 all the way which will not require the need of a link between the midfield and forwards. Nocerino would have been a nice fit in the engine room of the midfield. He has done well as captain of the many Azzurrini teams through the years, and was part of a Palermo side that made considerable improvement throughout the season. He's viewed as Gattuso's heir apparent, and probably should have gotten a chance over the veteran, considering the lack of games Gattuso got with Milan this season.
4. Thomas Hitzlsperger, Germany: To me this is a surprising omission from Joachim Low, perhaps this is because Hitzlsperger only made 3 appearnces for Lazio since transferring over in January from Stuttgart. Still, he appeared in every qualifier except one and started in each of the knockout rounds in Euro 2008.
5. Phillipe Mexes, France: The French are complaining mainly about the omissions of players like Karim Benzema, Patrick Vieira, and Samir Nasri. While all three of these are deserving to be in any France setup (under a manager who isn't crazy), I was surprised to see Mexes get snubbed. Rod Fanni from Rennes made the provisional squad, as did a William Gallas who can't seem to stay fit.

*Honorable mention to Uruguay's Christian Rodriguez, who was left out because he has to serve a 2-match International ban. I probably would have taken him if I'm Oscar Washington Tabarez because he could be influential in that third match (against Mexico), to set up Forlan and Suarez, and help Uruguay to the knockout rounds.*

5 Who Hopefully will not get on the plane to South Africa:

1. Gennaro Gattuso, Italy: And it really pains me to say it, because he is one of my all time favorite Milan players. The Snarling Dog has hardly gotten a sniff for Milan this season, and who knows if he will be able to discover his form in time for the World Cup. I mentioned that Nocerino would have been a better call, Luca Cigarini would have made sense too.
2. Jamie Carragher, England: Far be it for me to criticize Fabio Capello and his thought process, but why bring a player out of retirement at a position that you are already deep at? Rio and Terry will start, and you have cover with Ledley King, Michael Dawson, and Matthew Upson. Carragher might be going to South Africa at the expense of King, Dawson, or Upson. But if this was just to bring Carra into camp, Phil Jones of Blackburn might have been a better option for the experience.
3. Grafite, Brazil: Dunga goes with a striker who has only made 2 senior appearances, instead of any one of Ronaldinho, Pato, or Adriano. The expectation is that this is going to be a more tactically rigid Brazil team, and Dunga didn't want to overload on playmakers. Still, Ronaldinho would have been a more sensible choice here to give some playmaking and width late in a match.
4. Martin Palermo, Argentina: He's 36! And there are already far better options in attack with Lionel Messi, Sergio Aguero, Carlos Tevez, and Gonzalo Higuain to name a few. Maradona's affinity for Boca Juniors is the only explanation that Palermo is on the provisional list over Lisandro Lopez, who was brilliant for Lyon this season.
5. Lukas Podolski, Germany: Low better have it right in terms of his confidence in Podolski, because Kevin Kuranyi's 18 goals for Schalke were left out.

So who do you think got snubbed, and who do you think don't belong? Hit me up with your thoughts.