The game against Ecuador, at Guayaquil, in the World Cup qualifiers, was not as expected. Neither the players nor Ancelotti convinced people that all the work CBF (Brazilian Confederation of Football) had to get him there would pay off. The game ended with no goals on either side, and the Brazilian team almost didn’t create any real chances to score.
Although the expectations were high, the coach only had two complete practices before his debut. On the other side, there was an already pretty organized team. Ecuador temporarily took over the second position in the qualifiers. With a better performance, the equatorial team had possession of the ball for most of the time, with more attempts than Brazil.
Despite the disappointment that was the first match, Brazilians still filled Neo Química Arena, in São Paulo, for the second game against Paraguay. With more than 46 thousand people at the stadium, the tickets were sold out.
At the start, people could already see the difference from the first game. Despite it being only 1 – 0 to Brazil, the fans relaxed a bit because of the way the game was played.
From the beginning, the Brazilian team was offensive, patient, and organized. With Vini Jr, Raphinha, Martinelli, and Matheus Cunha moving around in the offensive field, the team had way more attempts than in the previous match. In fact, the only goal scored in the game, by Vini Jr, had just a few touches on the ball, traveling the field with speed and certainty.
In the defensive part of the field, the Lille player, AlexSandro, showed experience and took over the goal area, leaving almost no work for the goalkeeper Alisson.
By winning this game, Brazil is now officially qualified for the 2026 World Cup. This FIFA Date is the first one since the last World Cup that the team hasn´t conceded any goals.
After analyzing Ancelotti’s game as Brazil’s coach and how the team improved, the tendency is that Brazilians get even more anxious for results, especially knowing Carlo’s history.
WHO IS ANCELLOTTI?
The Italian coach started his managing career in Italy. While in Milan, besides some other titles, he won his first Champions League and a treble. A treble is when the team wins the national and continental championships and the national cup.
Since then, Ancelotti has won five Champions Leagues, being the most successful coach in the competition´s history. He won three titles at Real Madrid and two at Milan. He is also the only manager to take part in six Champions League finals.
By being so outstanding, it is no surprise that all Brazilians and the whole world have high expectations of him. Especially now that he is ahead of the biggest World Cup winner of all time and the only team that participated in all editions.
Seeing the latest games, it’s noticeable that Ancelotti is trying, experimenting. He has many options to work with, and he is exploring them all with the knowledge he has. In fact, after the game against Paraguay, he said that there are many other Brazilian players around the world that he and his team are analyzing, so there could be changes in the future.
The next two challenges Ancelotti will face are three months away, which will give him time to get to know the players better and decide what is the best solution for the Brazilian team. On September 4th, Brazil will play against Chile. Five days later, on the 9th, the team will face Bolivia.
The only thing that is left for us to do is to have patience, because the World Cup is not as far away as we think it is.
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The article above was edited by Isabelle Bignardi.
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