SAO PAULO - Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari is worried the street protests that are planned during the World Cup could hurt his teams chances of winning the title. Scolari says that although Brazilians have the right to complain about the government and demand improvements, perhaps the protests wont be coming at the "right time." He said the protests "could, big-time" affect his players performance during the World Cup, although he will not prohibit them from talking about the subject during the tournament. In an interview with Globo TV late Sunday, Scolari also said Brazil should have done a better job in its preparations for the World Cup, and said he has already made up his mind on 21 of the 23 players of his squad. Violent anti-government protests erupted across Brazil last year as people took to the streets calling for better services and questioning the billions being spent on hosting the World Cup and the 2016 Rio Olympics. The protests have since diminished in size, but they are widely expected again in the run-up to this years football tournament. "I think the protests can happen," Scolari said. "If they are peaceful, then thats democracy. Everyone has the right to protest. But I dont know if its the right time." The coach had already tried to distance the national team from the protests during last years Confederations Cup, when the largest public demonstrations in a generation broke out at the start of the warm-up tournament. Protests happened in all six host cities at the time, although matches and teams were not directly affected as Brazil went on to win the title. The players openly talked about the protests last year and the coach said they will be allowed to do it again during the World Cup. "They are national team players and they are on a mission," he said. "They can express themselves and say look, I also want a better Brazil, but I dont want it to be something that causes problems to our environment." Scolari also criticized Brazils preparations for the World Cup, saying that the country wasted time and should have done more to get things ready more quickly. "We could have done a better job to take advantage of these seven years that we had to prepare everything that was going to be needed, from airports to roads to education," he said. "But we lost time and we now we are out of time." Scolari last week confirmed nine players who will make Brazils squad — David Luiz, Oscar, Ramires, Willian, Paulinho, Julio Cesar, Thiago Silva, Fred and Neymar — and on Sunday he said there are only two spots remaining in the team. "We are still making observations, there are a lot of things we are still looking at," he said. Scolari will announce the official 23-man squad on May 7. Seven possible alternates will be announced later. Brazil will play friendlies against Panama and Serbia just before the World Cup opener against Croatia on June 12. Rod Beck Jersey . Gough finished in fourth, 0.433 seconds behind American Erin Hamlin, who took the bronze medal at the Sanki Sliding Center in Rzhanaya Polyana. Colin Rea Jersey .C. Lions. The clubs former starting quarterback, assistant and head coach returned Thursday as its receivers coach. http://www.customcubsjersey.com/custom-brandon-kintzler-jersey-large-1170n.html.com) - Devan Dubnyk stopped all 30 shots fired his way and made several big saves down the stretch for his third shutout of the season as the Minnesota Wild beat the Calgary Flames 1-0 on Tuesday. [url=http://www.customcubsjersey.com/custom-yu-darvish-jersey-large-1390n.html&񗜾]Yu Darvish Jersey[/url] .C. -- The Charlotte Bobcats said head coach Steve Clifford underwent a successful procedure Friday to have two stents placed in his heart. Jason Heyward Jersey . -- Caris LeVert had 14 points and a career-high 11 rebounds for his first career double-double, and No.The Edmonton Oilers have acquired defenceman Mark Fraser in exchange for forward Teemu Hartikainen and Cameron Abney. In 19 games with the Maple Leafs this season, the 27-year-old Fraser has notched one assist and a minus-8 rating with 33 penalty minutes. He is currently on a one-year deal worth $1.275 million and is eligible for unrestricted free agency at seasons end. "Marks been a real good soldier for us and to be able to move a veteran player to an organization that wants them I think is a great thing," Leafs assistant general manager Claude Loiselle told TSN. "Secondly, cap-wise, were in a situation where we need to create space, because of the guys who are coming off, Bolland particularly, and then Smitty [Trevor Smith]. In the past, previously, we had John-Michael Liles, who gave us $925,000 in cap space when he went down and with Tim Gleason playing up we dont have that luxury so we had to make a move." The deal frees up more than $1 million in salary cap space for the Leafs, according to Capgeek.com. It may be enough to get injured Centre Dave Bolland off the long-term injured reserve once a couple players are assigned to the Marlies. Hartikainen, 23, is currently playing with Ufa in the Kontinentall Hockey League where he has scored 13 goals and 14 assists in 43 games.dddddddddddd "He wants to play in the NHL," Loiselle said. "Hes probably a third-line player, competes hard, hard on the puck and that our scouts think highly of. He has an out in his contract in the KHL so thats good." The Leafs plan to keep Hartikainen in Russia, while they will likely assign Abney to either the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League or the East Coast Hockey Leagues Orlando Solar Bears. The Finnish forward last played for the Oilers in 2012-13 when he scored one goal and two assists in 23 games. It was the final season of his three-year, entry-level deal with the Oilers. He was originally selected in the sixth round (163rd overall) of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft and has scored six goals and seven assists in 52 career games with the Oilers. Abney - an Oilers 2009 third-rounder - has scored two goals and three assists with the Bakersfield Condors of the ECHL. He has never appeared in an NHL game. The Maple Leafs acquired Fraser in a 2012 trade that saw them send forward Dale Mitchell to the Anaheim Ducks. In 162 career NHL games with the Maple Leafs and New Jersey Devils, he has scored three goals and added 14 assists. ' ' '