Ref is absolutely out of his depth but the players need to just keep playing on. He isn't budging an inch.
Ref is doing well overall. Only thing I think he made a real mistake on was not carding a Brazilian player in that crowd.
Its actually infuriating.... Imo shouldn't have been called up at all with all thats going on with him.
Paquetá's been doing really well in build up and creation though. But should have done better on his chances, I agree.
It was a good first half in many aspects. The combinations up front were pretty sharp specially considering the size of the pitch. The midfield was effective in pressuring the ball and regaining possession very fast. But with all that being said .. only 2 shots on target and probably only a couple of good chances created.
Although Costa Rica's defense has been very disciplined, I don't feel like we've made it tough on them. So while it's a typical early cycle match where we are dominating but failing to score, I don't feel like it should be this difficult in this particular case. Wonder how much time the starters get on the field in the second half before Endrick and maybe Andreas Pereira come in.
And if Danilo wants the team to be serious, he needs to get them to stop whining and begging for calls.
Yeah, that was one where the replay was worth a look. Wasn't like the other plays. And weirdly it's one that they didn't make any fuss about.
Rodrygo is one hell of a player. I remember reading how people felt he was the more talented of the 2 with Vini Jr but I think he hasn't had the opportunity to truly showcase his skills at Madrid because of positional issues.
For games like these I which our coaches would play a more attacking lineup because teams like Costa Rica and the next game for that matter against Paraguay, they will sit back and defend deep. Even though Joao Gomes has pressed well and won the ball back a lot, I don’t think we need both him and Bruno Gfor games like this; one should be enough.
Joao Gomes has cleaned up well though. Maybe DG could do the same job against a Costa Rica or Paraguay, but I don't think JG has been the issue. We will probably see Endrick, Andreas and maybe even Savio in the second half at some point, Maybe DG too.
SporTV has as a commentator former Corinthians and SPFC midfielder Ricardinho, who played in the 2002 World Cup's Penta campaign. He said Brazil did not play a great game and recommended the removal of a volante for Endrick to then free up Vini and others. I think that for an opponent of limited risk who has opted to park the bus, this otherwise daring approach may be appropriate. I don't agree with Ricardinho that Brazil did not play a great game; if Ricardinho is hoping for the 1974 Oranje, he's got to look elsewhere. But Brazil dominated, was persistent, won almost every ball, and surrounded the Costa Rican net. And again, as I've written here recently, we fans need to contextualize the current moment - most literally, this opening match in the group stage of a continental tournament. Brazil is in transition, and Dorival is doing his best to rebuild the team. I will be disappointed and displeased with a draw, but if Brazil thoroughly dominates the second half, and/or hits the woodwork repeatedly, and the match ends 0-0, does this mean Dorival has got it all wrong? On a less serious note, when I saw Gustavo Alfaro with that suit, I thought, "wow, Dorival is wearing a suit." I then realized that was not Dorival but rather Alfaro. It's the duel of the brothers separated at birth.
That's a bit better from Vini. Still "cavada" but got the contact and it was something the ref couldn't ignore.
Joao Gomes has been decent. No complaints. But we're playing a team thats extremely inferior so really no player should be struggling. I would like to see Douglas Luiz against the tougher teams though.
First yellow for an unnecessary challenge on Rodrygo in the middle of the park, away from goal. Not dangerous to them, so a freebie for us.
SporTV commentators are calling for Andreas Pereira for Lucas Paquetá, Savinho for Rodrygo, and Endrick to replace one of the midfielders. The first half's domination is not continuing. Dorival may need to change the team soon.