World Cup: Norway boss fears Vini Jr, Ancelotti backs Neymar duo | OneFootball

Stale Solbakken gave a press conference on the eve of the Brazil vs Norway match

Vini Jr is Brazil’s biggest hope of advancing to the quarterfinals of the World Cup. Norway, the five-time champions’ next opponent, knows that. The European team’s coach, Stale Solbakken, was full of praise for the Flamengo academy product.

— Many coaches have had this concern about Vini Jr in recent years. He seems to be in very good physical condition and full of energy. The wings are important, but it is also very important to help the players who sit deeper so that we do not have problems. These situations are inevitable. They (the defenders) will certainly have support from their teammates — said Stale at a press conference held this Saturday (04).

Vini is ‘the man’ for Brazil in this World Cup. The No. 7 has scored four goals, provided one assist, and carried Carlo Ancelotti’s team through the first four matches of the tournament. In addition, the academy product won the man-of-the-match award in all three group-stage games.

VINI AND NEYMAR?

On the other hand, there was a surprise at coach Carlo Ancelotti’s press conference: the Brazil manager indicated that Vini and Neymar should play together. However, it is unlikely that the Santos player will start on Sunday (05), from 5 p.m. (Brasília time).

— Set pieces, yes, so far we have not made the most of our qualities, and maybe we need to take them better. We have practiced them well and are confident that we can score in that area. Neymar and Vini can definitely play together; I believe they will play together — Ancelotti said, imagining a scenario at some point during the 90 minutes.

WHEN WILL BRAZIL VS NORWAY BE?

Brazil vs Norway kicks off at 5 p.m. (Brasília time) at MetLife Stadium, located in the New York–New Jersey metropolitan area, in the United States. The World Cup round-of-16 clash will be broadcast by Globo, SBT, SporTV, CazéTV, and Nsports.

Whoever advances from Brazil vs Norway will face the winner of Mexico vs England. That match will also be on Sunday (05), at 9 p.m. (Brasília time), at the Azteca Stadium. The game will be shown exclusively on YouTube by CazéTV.

WHAT IS THE AUTHOR’S OPINION?

— It is nice to see Norway’s coach recognize Vini Jr. Just like Japan, I expect tight marking on the forward this Sunday. As for the partnership with Neymar suggested by Ancelotti, I hope it does not happen. If it does, it will certainly be because of an extreme need from the national team during the match — opined the Coluna do Fla journalist.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.