Brazilians had a chance of finishing the round in second place, if they had won
A played another game of fluctuations, this Tuesday (19), and left the Casa de Apostas Arena Fonte Nova, in Salvador, with just one point after drawing 1-1 with Uruguay, in the 12th round of the World Cup Qualifiers of the 2026 World Cup. The team led by Dorival Júnior made a good start first, wasted chances and had the net scored by Valverde, Real Madrid star, at the beginning of the second half, before leveling the score with a beautiful goal from Gérson . The Brazilians had a chance of finishing the round in second place, if they had won. In the end, the combined draw and Ecuador’s victory over Colombia left them in fifth place, with 18 points. In the Qualifiers, the top six places guarantee a direct place in the World Cup and the seventh place competes in a repechage.
Brazil barely let Uruguay have the ball in the first 15 minutes of the match. With a varied offensive repertoire, he pushed his opponents back and articulated the game from the midfield line forward. There were many invasions of the celestial area, where Brazilian players stumbled upon specific cuts or their own hasty decisions. Raphinha fulfilled the role of 10 very well, finding spaces with dribbling and good passes. Vinícius Júnior’s quick moves and Gerson’s intelligence also contributed to the offensive volume. Uruguay moved into the attacking field and managed to worry Ederson and his defensive teammates. The moment in which the Uruguayans pressed was brief, but, after demonstrating this new stance, the game became balanced, with the two teams sharing offensive actions until the end of the first half. Just before half-time, Rochet prevented a header from Igor Jesus
The beginning of the second half had its similarities to the beginning of the first half. Once again, Brazil was intense in attack, but this time the pressure lasted less time. Even so, it bore fruit, such as a poor finish by Savinho after stealing the ball and a dangerous shot by Vini Jr. that knocked paint off the post, served by Raphinha. Uruguay broke Brazil’s brief superiority when Valverde cleared Bruno Guimarães and struck from outside the box to open the scoring in the ninth minute. The Brazilians managed to remain calm and returned to pressure in the first moments after the Uruguayan goal. Thus, they found the equalizing goal in a move in which the ball was left for Gerson to hit it squarely, still in the air, to beat Rochet. In search of a comeback, the team continued to speed up the game, with Vinícius carrying the ball between the markers and finding spaces.
*With information from Estadão Conteúdo
Published by Sarah Paula
