Brazil and Uruguay face each other this Wednesday (11/20), at 9:45 pm (Brasília time), in the 12th round of the South American World Cup qualifiers.
One of the highlights of the Uruguayan team, however, is not within the four lines: it is the Argentine coach Marcelo Bielsa, 69 years old, known as “El Loco”.
MORE: Bielsa doesn’t greet Uruguay players? Why Suárez and Valverde destroyed the coach
Which teams and national teams has Bielsa coached?
Bielsa began his career as a coach in 1990, with Newell’s Old Boys, from Argentina, where he won two Argentine titles and reached the Libertadores final, when he lost to São Paulo in 1992.
In 1993, he moved to Atlas, from Mexico, staying with the team until 1995, when he joined América, also from Mexico.
In 1997, he returned to Argentina, becoming coach of Vélez Sarsfield. With the team, he won the Clausura of the Argentine Championship.
MORE: Bielsa: how did the coach respond to criticism from Luis Suárez and other Uruguay players?
His good performance took him to his first challenge in Europe, where he coached Espanyol in 1998. His period at the Spanish club, however, soon ended when Bielsa took over the Argentina national team after the 1998 World Cup.
For Argentina, the team qualified in first place in the 2002 World Cup qualifiers, but the country disappointed, being eliminated in the first phase in a difficult group, with Sweden, Nigeria and England.
Bielsa finished runner-up in the 2004 Copa América and won the gold medal at the Olympics, also in 2004. The coach, however, decided to leave his position for personal reasons.
After three years without coaching any team, he took over the Chile national team in 2007, where he stayed until 2011. Bielsa led the country to the 2010 World Cup, but was eliminated, losing to Brazil 3-0 in the round of 16.
After Chile, he had a long period coaching in Europe. Between 2011 and 2013, he coached Athletic Bilbao, from Spain. In 2014, he took over Olympique de Marseille, from France.
In 2016 and 2017, he played for Lazio, in Italy, and Lille, in France, respectively. Between 2018 and 2022, he had one of his best jobs, at Leeds United, in England, leading the team to the English second division title and returning the team to the Premier League.
MORE: Brazilian team: what did Dorival’s final squad look like after the cuts?
He has been in charge of Uruguay since 2023, when he was hired in May. Although he has had a good campaign so far for the Uruguayan national team, he has had some controversies, with criticism received from players such as Suárez and Valverde.
What titles has Bielsa won throughout his career?
Newell’s Old Boys
- Argentine Championship – 1 title – 1990/91
- Closing – 1 title – 1992
Velez Sarsfield
- Closing – 1 title – 1998
Leed United
- English second division – 1 title – 2019/20
Argentina sub-23
- Olympics – 1 gold medal – 2004
Brazil x Uruguay: where to watch
The game between Brazil and Uruguay will be broadcast on Globo (open TV) and sportv (closed TV), with retransmission on GloboPlay (streaming), with a subscription.
Brazil x Uruguay on TV and streaming:
- Date: November 19th, Tuesday
- Time: 9:45 pm (Brasília time)
- Where to watch: Globo (open TV) and sportv (closed TV), with retransmission on GloboPlay (streaming), with subscription.
MORE: Brazil x Uruguay: who won more? A look back at the South American classic
Brazil x Uruguay: lineups
How do the two teams arrive for the match? Check out the information!
Brazil lineup
Coach Dorival Júnior will not make any major changes in relation to the starting team that drew with Venezuela in the last round of the Qualifiers. The only new thing will be the entry of Danilo on the right flank, as Vanderson is suspended due to an accumulation of yellow cards.
Brazil lineup: Ederson, Danilo, Marquinhos, Gabriel Magalhães and Abner; Bruno Guimarães, Gerson and Raphinha; Vini Jr., Igor Jesus and Savinho. Technical: Dorival Junior.
MORE: Why will Neymar only return to the Brazilian team in 2025?
Uruguay lineup
Uruguay will be without Nahitan Nández, suspended, and Santiago Bueno, injured. As a result, Varela, a Flamengo player, should be the starter on the side. The rest of the starting lineup should be the same as the one that beat Colombia in the last round.
Uruguay lineup: Rochet; Varella, Giménez, Olivera and Sarachi; Valverde, Bentancur and Aguirre; Pellistri, Araújo and Darwin Núñez. Technical: Marcelo Bielsa.
Brazil’s last games: results
- 14/11 – Venezuela 1 x 1 Brazil – Qualifiers
- 15/10 – Brazil 4 x 0 Peru – Qualifiers
- 10/10 – Chile 1 x 2 Brazil – Qualifiers
- 10/09 – Paraguay 1 x 0 Brazil – Qualifiers
- 06/09 – Brazil 1 x 0 Ecuador – Qualifiers
Uruguay’s last games: results
- 15/11 – Uruguay 3 x 2 Colombia – Qualifiers
- 15/10 – Uruguay 0 x 0 Ecuador – Qualifiers
- 11/10 – Peru 1 x 0 Uruguay – Qualifiers
- 10/09 – Venezuela 0 x 0 Uruguay – Qualifiers
- 06/09 – Uruguay 0 x 0 Paraguay – Qualifiers
