Whether or not Copa America 2021 moves forward, Raúl Ruidíaz won’t be taking part.
The Seattle Sounders forward was dropped from the squad Thursday morning ahead of the start of the tournament, the Peruvian Football Federation announced. Peru is set to begin their Copa América campaign against Brazil on June 17.
¡Un mismo objetivo!
Estos son los futbolistas convocados por el profesor Ricardo Gareca para disputar la @CopaAmerica 2021.#UnidosSomosMásFuertes#ArribaPerú pic.twitter.com/f3jn6CT7X9— Selección Peruana (@SeleccionPeru) June 10, 2021Ruidíaz’s exclusion is a massive benefit to the Sounders, as the group stage of the tournament is not set to end until June 27, which would have caused him to miss at least three matches (LA Galaxy, Real Salt Lake and Vancouver Whitecaps).