Brazil are the nation who have lifted the most World Cup trophies and this time around, the South Americans are one of the favourites to not only reach the final but to be crowned the champions as well.
On paper, Brazil have one of the strongest squads in the tournament and they also go to Qatar at the back of some sublime form. They qualified for the World Cup by topping their group and they did so without even losing a single game.
They have been slotted in Group G alongside Cameroon, Switzerland and Serbia so barring a major implosion, Tite’s team should comfortably qualify for the knockout stages.
Another reason why Brazil are one of the tournament favourites is that they are one of the rare teams who haven’t been badly hit by injuries. The big players who had picked up injuries in the last couple of months have all more or less returned to full fitness.
Such a big and strong squad also poses a major selection headache for the coach because Tite will have to get the balance absolutely right in each and every game.
DEFENCE:
Brazil have one of the more experienced defensive contingencies with the likes of Dani Alves and Thiago Silva amidst the mix. While Silva is a guaranteed starter in central defence alongside Marquinhos but it’s possibly going to be Danilo who will play on the right-hand side.
Alex Telles is going to be the first-choice left-back for Brazil and he’s someone who has great ability going forward as well as in dead-ball situations.
MIDFIELD:
Tite has more or less zeroed in on his main midfielders which is why he’s selected only six midfielders for the World Cup squad.
Casemiro and Fred have formed a solid partnership in central midfield and the pair is going to be one of the first names on the team sheet for Brazil. Fabinho has also done great for Liverpool but we don’t think the manager is going to select him ahead of Casemiro or Fred. Maybe if Brazil can wrap up the group early on then Fabinho could get some game time.
And for the attacking midfielder’s role, West Ham United’s Lucas Paqueta should get the nod.
ATTACK:
The forward depart is the one where the World Cup will be make-or-break for Brazil because Tite has a plethora of talent available at his disposal right now.
Neymar is probably the only one who is a guarantee on the left wing but other than that, everyone else has a fighting chance to come into the starting XI.
Neymar’s seniority means Vinicius will have to be content with substitute roles but on the other flank, it’s going to be even more chaos.
Players like Rodrygo, Antony, Raphinha and Richalison will all fight it out for the right winger’s role while Martinelli and Gabriel Jesus will be the contenders for the striker’s position.
Jesus started this season brilliantly with Arsenal but in recent weeks his form has seen a slight dip. However, his club teammate Gabriel Martinelli is still performing in fifth gear.
We think Tite is going to bank on Jesus because he’s a more natural centre-forward(Martinelli’s primarily a winger) but if things don’t work out then the Brazil coach has plenty of options.
Brazil predicted line up for the World Cup:
Predicted Starting XI(4-3-3): Alisson; Marquinhos, Thiago Silva, Danilo, Telles; Casemiro, Fred, Paqueta; Neymar, Antony/Richarlison/Raphinha, Jesus/Martinelli.
Stats via Fotmob
