EAST RUTHERFORD — “If you go to a World Cup, you must see Brazil.”
Those were words that rang true for decades. In part because you could always count on the Selecao being at the World Cup (the only nation to appear in every tournament), and in part because you could count on the Brazilians entertaining like few teams can.
A run of disappointing World Cups had started to make that reputation fade a bit. The visions of Pele, Romario and Ronaldo gathering dust in the memories of fans hungry to see their kind of magic again. The jerseys are still bright yellow, and the rhythm and passion of their fans still burn bright, but the futebol just hasn’t been the same for a long while.
The hope was that Carlo Ancelotti could help Brazil find that magic again. The Italian mastermind has made a career out of bringing the best out of the sport’s greatest players, so who better to re-awaken the Amazonian giants?
Saturday’s World Cup opener against Morocco provided Ancelotti’s project a stern first test, and the African powerhouse exposed the reality that there is still plenty of work to be done. The Moroccans played Brazil to a deserved 1-1 draw at MetLife Stadium, and you could argue the Africans produced more quality than the South Americans.
Vinicius Junior’s stunning equalizer was the clear exception. His 32nd-minute stunner canceled out Ismail Saibari’s impressive opening goal, sending the heavily pro-Brazil crowd into a a frenzy. Surely the Real Madrid star’s golazo was going to be the first of many.
It wasn’t.
Instead of more goals, we saw more disjointed play, and little of the flashy Samba-inspired artistry the Brazilians used to deliver regularly. If anything, it was Morocco’s Brahim Diaz who conjured the more impressive playmaking moments than his opponents.
Yes, there were Brazilian chances, and Moroccan goalkeeper Yassine Bounou showed his quality in a handful of occasions, but Morocco was more than equal to the task, and the North Africans created more chances, played Brazil even in possession, and were even more efficient in the final third.
A draw against the 2022 World Cup semifinalists isn’t something to be ashamed of, but for a Brazilian fanbase desperate for a return to the glory days, Saturday night’s draw felt less like a re-awakening and more like a reminder that while Ancelotti might be a coaching magician, he isn’t quite a miracle worker.
Maybe Neymar can return from injury and spin some gold later in the tournament. Perhaps we’ll see Vinicius Junior and Raphinha find a connection that reminds us of the Romario-Bebeto and Ronaldo-Rivaldo tandems of the past. Those ideas feel more like wishful thinking after Saturday.
