Barcelona right-back Daniel Alves has overcome a thigh injury and will start for Brazil against South Africa this evening.
The 29-year-old, who is the most experienced player in the Seleção squad, missed normal training this week after feeling pain in his left thigh.
Barcelona teammate Adriano was ready to fill in at right-back, should Alves have not recovered, but Mano Menezes has now confirmed him in the starting line-up.
Alves said: “I was in so much pain in my leg, it was difficult to play.
“But today [Wednesday] I managed to train and hopefully I’ll get to work for 90 minutes."
The rest of the Brazil line-up is fairly inexperienced at this level, with just 170 caps between them, but Alves has said the youngsters must adapt quickly to the pressure of the Brazilian public.
The likely captain added: “To be in the squad, players need to accept this reality. This is what has the people"s love. We need to be prepared.
“We need to take responsibility. Though a young group, we can share good and bad times."
This evening’s game at São Paulo’s Morumbi Stadium kicks off at 19:45 (BST) and you can follow all the action live on Sambafoot.
Brazil: Diego Alves; Daniel Alves, David Luiz, Dedé, Marcelo; Romulo, Ramires, Oscar, Lucas; Neymar, Leandro Damião.
South Africa: Khune; Gaza, Sangweni, Khumalo, Masenamela; Matlaba, Dikgacoi, Furman, Tshabalala; Serero; McCarthy.
