SANTIAGO —
The absence of Vinicius Junior was felt and the poor performance of recent dates continued. But Brazil came forward when danger devastated it.
With great difficulty and despite its much more favorable record, Brazil came back to achieve a tight 2-1 victory over Chile on Thursday, with a goal from Luiz Henrique a few minutes before the end, and earned a break towards the 2026 World Cup.
Coach Dorival Junior had a complex puzzle to solve given the significant losses in the heart of the green and yellow team. The most notable was that of the Real Madrid forward, who suffered a delicate cervical injury on Saturday.
“We are in a renewal process and that is not simple. Today we had only four players who finished the last game of the World Cup and that has considerable weight,” assessed the Brazilian coach at a press conference. “Two years from now we will have a very strong team, but we will go through some difficulties before that.”
Although they took the field with an ultra-offensive squad, a goal by Eduardo Vargas shortly after the opening whistle destabilized the five-time world champion. It took half an hour for an opaque Brazil to begin to find its place and make its progress to pierce the red wall.
In the first minute, the National Stadium of Santiago was immersed in surprise almost as great as the joy of the public. An impeccable cross from Felipe Loyola found Vargas well positioned inside the area, so that he opened the scoring with a precise cross header that left Ederson, who earned the starting position in the Canarinha after an injury to Alisson Becker, no chance.
The adverse score set off alarm bells in Brazil, which had just lost at home to Paraguay on the previous date of the tie and ran the risk of even being relegated to the playoff position.
But if “Turboman” opened the scoring in the opening minute, Igor Jesus left everything equal in the last moment of the first half, also with a header. After an alleged penalty that Chile claimed, the forward beat Guillermo Maripán in the air and scored the goal that allowed the Canarinha to go to the break with oxygen.
In the second half, the match was more even. The tie pushed both to seek victory. Brazil recovered from the initial blackout and tried Rodrygo, Rafinha and Abner on the sides and with long, short and aerial plays. The Brazilians scored twice but both were disallowed due to offside.
The winning goal finally came with a minute left before the final whistle, with a left footed shot by Luiz Henrique that left Brayan Cortés completely without options.
Chile, for its part, seems to have found its rhythm again on the field, despite the defeat. Against Brazil, he showed the determination and coordination that he had shown at the beginning of the era of Argentine Ricardo Gareca, who arrived on the bench at the end of January.
Equally affected by significant casualties and in the midst of renovation, Gareca sparked by announcing a call that brought radical modifications and absences of great Chilean idols. The Argentine has admitted that La Roja is going through a complex moment and that until now no one has emerged as a leader or great reference in this team.
But against Brazil, and with the leading role of the trio Dario Osorio, Felipe Loyola and Eduardo Vargas, Chile delivered its best version in months. They started firmly and steadily, betting on an offensive stance but closing their ranks well at the back in the challenge to move away from the bottom of the table in the Qualifiers – although they failed at the last moment.
“We were satisfied with everything we saw on the field and we are in a position to improve even more,” said Gareca after the meeting, although he acknowledged that “time is limited” and “Chile needs results.”
“We have to change the mood and prepare for the game with Colombia.”
Brazil advanced to fourth place and established itself in the direct qualification zone for the 2026 World Cup, with 13 points. Meanwhile, the Chileans remain in penultimate place, with five units increasingly forced to add so as not to see their World Cup aspirations buried.
