See the Brazilian team’s lineup against Venezuela

The Brazilian team is scheduled to play against Venezuela in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers this Thursday (14), at 6pm, at the Monumental de Maturín stadium. The only change in relation to the team that played against Peru is the return of Vini Jr in place of Rodrygo, who was injured.

At the press conference, Dorival Júnior stated that he already went to Belém with the intention of repeating the team that won 4-0 in the last round, choosing, in addition to Vini, Ederson, Vanderson, Marquinhos, Gabriel Magalhães and Abner; Bruno Guimarães, Gerson and Raphinha; Igor Jesus and Savinho.

Vini was sidelined in the games against Chile and Peru due to a cervical injury, but has now recovered and will return to the field for the Canary Islands, after a shorter training period than usual. There were only two training sessions with the full squad before tomorrow’s game.

In his speech, the coach even commented on Vini, involved in debates in recent weeks because of the Ballon d’Or award, in which he came second. “For me, there was a mistake on the part of those who evaluated it. If it is an individual award, the best player this last season was Vini”, said the coach.

As for the starting lineup, Dorival said he was already planning to take the same one that faced Peru. “I already had the idea of ​​a repeat. I had no doubts at any point. I count on all of them, they are very good players, who deserve respect and will have opportunities”, he commented.

Regarding those called up but not selected, the coach stated that what is needed is time: “André always gave a positive response when he came on, Paquetá is trying to find its best moment. Everything is a matter of time.”

In addition to André, Guilherme Arana was also left out of training this Wednesday (13) due to medical advice. The technical committee’s option was to keep them away until next Friday (15), and then decide whether they will be available against Uruguay.

Even today, the team will go to Venezuela, with 16 points in the table so far, being placed fourth in the Qualifiers. If the Venezuelan team wins, Brazil will move up to second place.

“It is a field that has allowed them to create a very favorable environment around their national team. But regardless of this, Venezuelan football has been growing. A very serious work that has been going on. Big players spread across the world. In our country, there are many important people for your team. They are unbeaten there with two wins and three draws, including Argentina and Uruguay. Forget easy games with Bolivia and Venezuela until recently. The order of world football has been changing. But we believe in a great game. There is a lot of confidence from what we can see in training, and I hope we can repeat it on the field.”

“If we repeat what we did in the last few matches we will have come a long way. It will be two very complicated games. Just like in March, with Colombia, Argentina and then Ecuador. South American football has grown a lot in general. Growth happened. The games are becoming more competitive every day. We are seeing 1-0 results, surprising results. Teams that didn’t compete are fighting for a place in the World Cup. With these changes, we need to be more prepared. If we can repeat what we did in the last two matches… we are gaining momentum. Nothing is resolved. We are demonstrating a gain, even if it is not what was sought. May we play two great games.”

“Our situation was not entirely favorable. We’re coming from a position way back. We played four matches and had three wins and one defeat, even so we didn’t change our position in the table much. We need to win in terms of better structuring this team. It’s been happening. That’s why I talk so much about process. I always respected in clubs and the results showed. We have 12 games, which is not enough for what I imagine the work will be like. But the players understand what we want to implement, taking it game by game. These are important details that have made a considerable change from the moment we have possession of the ball. Repossession has been quick when lost. We didn’t concede any clear chances, with the exception of Chile’s goal. We realized we needed this. May this team continue to be safe and with offensive variations, which has always been the difference in Brazilian football.”

“I think we have had some very complicated situations recently. Pedro, Bremer… now with Militão. Unfortunately, one injury on top of another. Neymar’s own return, which has been happening gradually. It’s not easy to go through a moment like this. This makes the player create resilience and become stronger. Nobody wants it, it ended up happening. Our support and prayers are for them to return quickly.”

“The greatest award was that he acquired the greatest respect of the Brazilian people. We all understand that for everything he accomplished, he was the most lethal player. He was the one who deserved it. I believe he will continue this search process. He is a player who reinvents himself all the time. He went through several situations in his career and never lost his desire to be a protagonist. Perhaps his greatest achievement will be a collective achievement that we will all help achieve in a while.”

• Goalkeepers: Bento (Al-Nassr), Ederson (Manchester City) and Weverton (Palmeiras)
• Sides: Danilo (Juventus), Vanderson (Monaco), Abner (Lyon) and Guilherme Arana (Atlético-MG)
• Defenders: Léo Ortiz (Flamengo), Gabriel Magalhães (Arsenal), Marquinhos (PSG) and Murillo (Nottingham Forest)
• Midfielders: André (Wolverhampton), Andreas Pereira (Fulham), Bruno Guimarães (Newcastle), Gerson (Flamengo), Lucas Paquetá (West Ham) and Raphinha (Barcelona)
• Attackers: Estêvão (Palmeiras), Igor Jesus (Botafogo), Luiz Henrique (Botafogo), Gabriel Martinelli (Arsenal), Savinho (Manchester City) and Vinicius Junior (Real Madrid)