Four years ago Brazil were unlucky to go out of the World Cup to Croatia in the quarter-finals. Four years prior that they were also slightly unfortunate to fall to Belgium at the same stage. This time they failed even to get that far and there was nothing unlucky about their loss to Norway.
This, frankly, is an unmitigated disaster.
Carlo Ancelotti arrived with his band aid after a 4-1 thrashing by Argentina in March of last year.
Of his 16 games in charge of the national team he has won 10, drew three and lost three. He turned around a side that had struggled in World Cup qualifying, losing four out of five games prior to his arrival.
But that has not proved enough.
Brazil now need major surgery – starting with the area of the field where they used to be so strong, so creative, so entrancing – the midfield.
Turning their back on imaginative central midfield play has lost Brazil some friends along the way, and it is also losing them matches. The fact that they were comprehensively outpassed by Norway on a warm summer’s afternoon at this World Cup is simply astonishing – but it has to do with the make up of the side.
Ancelotti was a hostage to Casemiro. The first thing the coach did was recall the player from 18 months in the international wilderness.
There were plusses. Casemiro gave the team structure and freed Bruno Guimaraes, who until his early missed penalty against Norway – and what a difference that might have made – was enjoying a fine tournament.
But Casemiro’s vulnerability in open space was always a problem – clear in the second minute when Norway had a goal disallowed. And so the way Brazil defended was to drop deep and watch Norway exchange their passes and grow in confidence.
And then there is the absence of Lucas Paqueta, injured in the previous round against Japan. Ancelotti confessed that he did not have another player with the same characteristics. In came Arsenal’s Gabriel Martinelli, which had the effect of making the team’s attack almost entirely dependent on quick direct breaks.
The coach made an error with his initial call up – having only five midfielders was a serious lapse, and when right back Wesley was injured in the final warm-up game Ancelotti used the opportunity to bring in potential Manchester United signing Ederson. But if the coach is to blame then so is the country.
