Before the gates of Lincoln Financial Field were opened to the public for the match between Brazil and Haiti, in Group C of the World Cup, there were tests on the sound system. And they indicated a lineup for the Brazilian team with five changes in relation to the lineup adopted in the first round, in the 1-1 draw with Morocco.
The simulation, carried out before 4:30 pm (5:30 pm Brasília time), featured the teams’ entry song onto the field, “Sirius”, famous thanks to Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls, and the anthems of the two nations. Then, the teams that should be led by Carlo Ancelotti and Sebastién Migné were announced.
If the formation that won the arena’s speakers is indeed the official one, Brazil will enter the field as follows: Alisson; Danilo, Marquinhos, Gabriel Magalhães and Douglas Santos; Fabinho, Danilo Santos, Luiz Henrique and Matheus Cunha; Raphinha and Vinicius Junior.
The new players would be Danilo, Fabinho, Danilo Santos, Luiz Henrique and Matheus Cunha. And Ibañez, Casemiro, Bruno Guimarães, Lucas Paquetá and Igor Thiago would go to the bench. According to FIFA (International Football Federation), the squads are released about an hour before the kick-off.
Brazil, it is true, was not the only traditional team having difficulty at the start of the tournament. Spain, for example, considered among the great candidates for the title, ended 0-0 with Cape Verde, debuting at the World Cup.
The game was mentioned by Danilo when he predicted difficulties against Haiti.
“My friends, did you see how Cape Verde defended itself against Spain? Besides the issue of having a line of six or seven defenders, the guys left their lives in every ball. It’s that thing of giving in, going the extra mile, to defend the result and play a beautiful role in the World Cup against a favorite”, he observed.
It will be with this mentality that the Haitians will take the field in Philadelphia. Even though they are coming off a 1-0 defeat to Scotland in the opening round and need to score to fuel their hopes of qualifying, they will play with a much smaller burden on their shoulders than that carried by their opponents.
“Our rivals have a lot more to lose than us. How lucky for the boys to play in this kind of atmosphere,” said coach Sébastien Migné. “We have a difficult mountain to climb against Brazil, but we will try to rise to the challenge. It will be a prestigious game”, added the Frenchman.
