What went wrong with Dorival Junior’s Brazil?

Brazil lost to Uruguay in the quarter-finals of the Copa America.

Dorival Junior’s Brazil have been eliminated from the 2024 Copa America after a devastating 4-2 penalty shootout defeat to Uruguay in the quarter-finals at Allegiant Stadium.

The match between the two South American football giants proved to be a tough affair, full of heavy fouls, exchanges of words between players and missed chances. But no goals were scored and the final score in regular time was 0-0.

In the end, it was Uruguay, the 15-time winner of the Copa America, who emerged victorious, beating favourites Brazil 4-2 on penalties to bring their tournament to an unexpectedly premature end.

With this thrilling penalty shootout victory, La Celeste secured a place in the semi-finals of the 2024 Copa America, where they will face outsiders Colombia. Colombia are currently on a 27-game unbeaten run after beating Panama 5-0 in the quarter-finals.

At the other end of the spectrum is Brazil, who saw their dream of a 10th Copa America title crushed this summer after a heartbreaking quarter-final exit.

Before the quarter-finals, Brazil had an inconsistent group stage, surprisingly finishing second in Group D behind leaders and semi-finalists Colombia, with one win and two draws.

The Seleção Canarinha began their campaign with a disappointing goalless draw against Costa Rica, followed by a resounding 4-1 victory over Paraguay in the next match. Just when things seemed to be clicking for Dorival Junior’s side, they were hampered by a frustrating 1-1 draw against Colombia in their final group match.

Lack of clinical finishing haunts Brazil’s Copa America campaign

One of the biggest problems that plagued Brazil throughout the competition was their inability to be calm and clinical in front of goal, and as a result they failed to capitalize on big scoring opportunities. Despite dominating the statistics in almost every match, Brazil proved ineffective in fully capitalizing on their creativity, as their lack of ruthlessness in the final third ultimately led to their premature elimination from the tournament.

Apart from the four goals against Paraguay in their second group match, Brazil had little to score, managing just one goal in their other three games.

Inexperienced squad and coach struggle under tournament pressure

In the absence of star players like Neymar Jr. and Casemiro this summer, this talented but inexperienced Brazilian team, which featured a number of new faces, ultimately collapsed under the pressure of major tournaments that come with a prestigious competition like the Copa America, preventing this talented team from reaching its full potential.

Another major factor that has certainly contributed to Brazil’s disappointing tournament is the appointment of an inexperienced head coach like Dorival Junior to helm one of the world’s best footballing nations. His lack of tactical flexibility, poor in-game management skills and inability to get the best out of such a talented group of players are a negative reflection on his coaching resume.

Five-time world champions Brazil are hoping to bounce back from their 2024 Copa América disappointment and are now looking to assemble a top team to gain international glory at the 2026 World Cup.

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