Defeat to Japan highlights Brazil’s poor form ahead of the World Cup | OneFootball

The defeat suffered against Japan this Tuesday, by 3-2, after a comeback, at the Ajinomoto Stadium in Tokyo, is yet another chapter in the bad phase the Brazilian National Team is going through in this cycle leading up to the 2026 World Cup.

Coming off a 5-0 thrashing of South Korea, the Brazilian National Team took the field with high expectations and, even with eight changes compared to the last match, managed to control the game against Japan, opening a 2-0 lead in the first half without much difficulty.

In the second half, however, an individual mistake by Fabrício Bruno paved the way for the Japanese comeback. The Brazilian team seemed to be emotionally affected by the home side’s goal and from then on was unable to react and regain control of the match.

What happened in Tokyo, however, is not out of the ordinary. Although the team has improved since coach Carlo Ancelotti’s arrival, the Seleção still displays many problems on the field, and the Italian coach doesn’t even have enough time to work in depth with his players on certain aspects of the game.

Under Ancelotti’s command, Brazil has played six matches, recording three wins, one draw, and two losses. Before the Italian’s arrival, under Dorival Júnior, the team suffered a heavy defeat against Argentina, 4-1, in Buenos Aires in the South American Qualifiers, drew with Venezuela, and was eliminated in the Copa América quarterfinals by Uruguay.

In the South American Qualifiers, the Seleção had the worst campaign in history since the tournament adopted its current format, having to settle for fifth place overall.

With less than a year until the World Cup, time is short for Ancelotti to solve all the problems accumulated by the Brazilian National Team over the past year. The coach, in fact, will have only two more dates to run tests and define the group that will be called up for the World Cup to be held in the USA, Mexico, and Canada.

In November, Brazil will face African teams, probably Senegal and Tunisia. Then, in March 2026, the CBF is negotiating friendlies against European teams. France is likely to be one of the opponents. Croatia or the Netherlands may also face the Seleção on the relevant FIFA date.

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