After a shaky start, the Real Madrid winger shone brilliantly as Brazil won the 2024 Copa America for the first time.
A common association with the name Seleção is the association with exceptional football talent, as it conjures images of legendary Brazilian players. Everything about a goal, a specific move, or footwork exudes an air of mystery.
Locally, it’s known as Ginga, but Samba Football is the official name. The Brazilian football style was shaped by two primary sources. Before anything else, there’s the ancient Angolan martial art of Capoeira, which teaches kicking, headbutting, deceit, and dodging, among other techniques. Second, there’s samba, a kind of solo dance that calls for slightly bent knees and straight legs.
On Friday night, Vinicius Jr. discovered his inner samba.
It seemed like the moment the Real Madrid superstar proved to the world that he possesses the qualities to represent the Selecao’s next generation culminated in his spectacular performance.
First, there was an absurd rainbow on the sidelines, and then, in the first half, two goals were scored.
Brazil recovered from their first-round disappointment—a scoreless draw with Costa Rica—on Friday night by defeating Paraguay. After an incredible 4-1 victory, the Seleção finally felt like themselves on the field.
Brazil scored three goals in the first fifteen minutes to steal the victory, despite a disappointing start when Lucas Paqueta missed a penalty. In the 35th minute, Vini scored the first goal, and eight minutes later, Savio scored his first international goal. The winger for Real Madrid scored twice in the final seconds of the first half.
Just three minutes into the last half-hour, Paraguay surprised the Seleção. They scored a goal back through Omar Alderete’s long-range strike, but that was their only chance. Only one objective. In the 65th minute, Paqueta had another opportunity to redeem himself from the penalty spot, and this time he scored.
Even though Paraguay’s terrible defense allowed at least two goals and the team didn’t exactly put on a show, they managed to pull it off. Winning is winning.
The Copa America has begun, and Brazil’s third-round match against Luis Diaz and Colombia will be their toughest test yet as they look to win their group.
Allegiant Stadium’s Brazil squad ranked by GOAL. Defensive and goalkeeper Alisson (6/10):
When Paraguay’s opener goes off, I’ll be sorry I didn’t do more to stop him. He was good in his role otherwise.
Danilo scored six points out of ten:
He did an excellent job as captain, calming down a number of conflicts. He may not be the optimal choice on the right side anymore. Almost no overlap play of any quality comes from Savio.
The Marquinhos have a rating of 6 out of 10.
Despite being repeatedly put in danger as Paraguay’s attack center, he was pinpoint accurate when he passed from the back line.
Military Commander (6/10):
Even though it wasn’t his most intimidating defensive performance, there were moments when it worked.
Wendell scored 6.3 out of 10.
A bit clumsy in the forward motion, but appeared more at ease than Arana in the opening round. Central area
Guimares Bruno (7/10):
Throughout the match, displayed veteran leadership by remaining composed and unruffled.
Joey Gomes (7 out of 10):
Midfield performed admirably once again. Served as a dependable link between the field’s ends and the middle. Assault on Savo (7/10):
Scoring your first international goal is always an incredible feeling. Proved his rightful advantage over his right flank opponents.
Maximilian Paqueta (5.0/10):
Scored the second penalty after missing the first. On the other hand, at 10 it wasn’t very effective.
“Vinicius Jr.” (9/10):
The performance that Vini gave was exceptional. He was completely at ease throughout, from the first half’s rainbow strike to his deft touch in the penalty area. Not to mention a brace in the first half, so it was quite the performance.
Roger (6 out of 10)
When someone is put in an awkward position, it’s very hard to pass judgment on them. Even though he connected with the defenders and posed a danger, his play as a 9 ultimately led to nothing. Males and Rafaela, the manager:
Served as Savio’s replacement without contributing significantly.
Six points for Douglas Louis:
Supplied a midfield block and replaced Guimares.
Endrik, who does not have any data stored:
It was a substitution made late in the game that ultimately decided the outcome.
Hi there, I’m Andreas Pereira.
I came in as a late replacement for Packet and ended up being pretty energetic.
Gabriel [no information]:
Militao was replaced late.
Junior Dorival (5 out of 10):
This outcome would not have been so biased as the score suggests, if not for the genius Vini. Selekao continues to resemble square pieces that occasionally attempt to fit into round openings. Since Rodrigo is struggling at striker, Dorival must find a solution.
No amount of points scored will be enough to defeat Colombia with this kind of performance.