Flamengo talisman out of Brazil's next Copa clash | OneFootball

Lucas Paquetá diagnosed with an injury to the hamstring in his right thigh

Brazil’s national team could play the World Cup Round of 16 without Lucas Paquetá. That is because the Flamengo player was diagnosed with a muscle injury in his thigh. As a result, Brazil will take the field without the midfielder, who has never lost a World Cup match.

After all, the player has six wins and two draws in eight matches for the Seleção in the 2022 and 2026 World Cups. The national team does, however, have one loss in World Cup matches during which the playmaker was called up but did not play.

What loss is this for Brazil without Paquetá?

In 2022, Tite’s squad won its first two group-stage matches. So the Seleção allowed itself the luxury of fielding only reserves in the third match against Cameroon. As a result, Brazil lost 1-0 to the Cameroonians without the Flamengo starter on the field.

But didn’t Brazil lose to Croatia?

The Flamengo academy product did in fact start against Croatia in 2022. The midfielder even provided the assist for Neymar to score Brazil’s goal. However, the semifinal spot was decided only on penalties. Therefore, the match ended in a draw in regular time.

But why won’t Paquetá play in the 2026 Round of 16?

The Flamengo player left the Round of 32 match because of pain in his left thigh. Then the academy product was diagnosed with a muscle injury that could rule him out of the World Cup. According to reporting by Coluna do Fla, the most optimistic scenario is having the player available for a possible final on July 19.

Who will Brazil face in the Round of 16?

Therefore, Paquetá will be unavailable for Sunday’s (05) match against Norway. Kickoff is at 5:00 p.m. Brasília time in New Jersey, United States. Carlo Ancelotti, however, still has three other Flamengo players at his disposal.

Of the trio, Danilo plays at right-back, while Alex Sandro has become Douglas Santos’s backup on the left side of defense. Léo Pereira, however, has yet to take the field in this edition of the World Cup.

Who else from Flamengo is playing in the World Cup?

The next Flamengo player to take the field in the World Cup is Gonzalo Plata. Ecuador faces Mexico starting at 10:00 p.m. Brasília time this Tuesday (30) for a place in the Round of 16.

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