Gabriel Martinelli’s 95th-minute strike thrust Brazil into the World Cup round of 16, as the Seleção fought back from a goal down against Japan in Houston.
The widely tipped dark horses offered a stellar defensive effort in the opening period to stymie the five-time world champions, and Kaishū Sano’s strike from distance was just reward for their diligence out of possession.
Brazil, flummoxed and uninspired for 45 minutes, returned for the second half invigorated by Carlo Ancelotti‘s tactical tweaks and an anti-’jogo bonito’ emphasis on crosses into the box. The doggedness of Japan started to fade in the face of a canary yellow upsurge, and Casemiro’s equalizer before the hour had quickly become inevitable.
Chances arrived in the aftermath for Ancelotti’s men, including an otherworldly solo sequence from Vinicius Junior, but Brazil’s momentum had seemingly been stifled heading into the tie’s epilogue. Then the moment of quality arrived. A combination down the right led to Bruno Guimarães delivering a decisive pass into Gabriel Martinelli, who sorted his feet out expertly before finding the finish.
His effort kissed Zion Suzuki’s glove and crossed the line via a ricochet off the inside of the post, sending the swathes of canary yellow inside NRG Stadium into a state of frenzy.
While it was an all-too-familiar crushing defeat for Japan on the big stage, Brazil will now prepare for Norway or Côte d’Ivoire in the next round.
The Moment That Defined the Match
There was reticence regarding Brazil’s potential to claim a sixth World Cup crown this summer due to the lack of quality in certain areas of the pitch. Fullback was earmarked as a particularly problematic position, and some had been concerned with the reliance on Casemiro at the base of midfield, despite his productive final season at Manchester United.
In one fell swoop, two of Brazil’s noted issues reared their ugly head and directly led to Japan’s excellent opening goal.
Danilo, a reliable right back for much of his career but no longer of the requisite level, squandered possession woefully to the spritely Kaishū Sano, whose path to Brazil’s retreating defense was merely blocked by the very moveable object with No. 5 on his back.
Sano’s burst left Casemiro in the dust like he was Jackson Storm easily bypassing Lightning McQueen. We’re sure Sano didn’t quite utter "enjoy your retirement" as the Brazilian hopelessly tried to offer some form of resistance, with his legs doing the talking. By the time Casemiro was once again in touching distance, the damage had been done. Sano’s pinpoint effort rifled past Alisson to give Japan the lead.
Overall, this was a match, like the draw with Morocco, that further outlined the limitations of this Brazil roster. But, unlike its Matchday 1 stalemate, there was evidence here as to why Ancelotti could end up inspiring the Seleção’s first World Cup triumph in 24 years.
Brazil Player Ratings vs. Japan (4-1-2-3)
GK: Alisson—6.4: The Liverpool goalkeeper was beaten by an excellent strike after back-to-back clean sheets. Some of Alisson’s work was messier than usual, although Japan was only able to test him sporadically.
RB: Danilo—6.2: There wasn’t much to like at all about Danilo’s showing, but boy, did he cross the ball well in Houston.
CB: Marquinhos—7.7: The skipper was certainly tested more than his partner in defensive transition, but Marquinhos typically did just about enough to keep Japan’s dynamic counters at bay.
CB: Gabriel—8.4: That was some delivery from the Arsenal man to set up Casemiro’s equalizer. Gabriel’s aggressive positioning helped Brazil sustain pressure after the restart, coming up trumps with the ball, too.
LB: Douglas Santos—7.8: After an indifferent opening 45 minutes, the left back’s work in getting up the pitch afforded Vinicius Junior more joy in the second half.
DM: Casemiro—8.5: There’s no playing down just how poor Casemiro was in the first half. It wasn’t just the goal sequence; he was constantly giving the ball away and was booked early on for a reckless foul on the edge of the box. However, the midfielder was a key attacking weapon for Brazil after the restart.
AM: Bruno Guimarães—8.4: Guimarães had a positive influence as a combiner between the lines, and after coming close with a header at the start of the second half, he delivered a sumptuous pass through to Martinelli for the winner.
AM: Lucas Paquetá—7.1: Stretched his hamstring in the opening stages and spent much of the first half remonstrating with teammates, asking for more movement ahead of him.
RW: Rayan—7.6: Took his time to grow into the contest, having been isolated and crowded out to begin with. Produced a few sharp moments and had a hand in the winner.
ST: Matheus Cunha—6.6: Space was limited by an excellent Japanese defensive block, with his two shots on target coming from distance. Dropped into midfield for the first 20 minutes of the second half as Ancelotti changed tack.
LW: Vinicius Junior—7.7: Brazil’s superstar was denied one of the great individual World Cup solo goals by Zion Suzuki and the inside of the post, having been tamed for the opening hour. He ran down blind alleys at times, but Ancelotti would’ve appreciated his attempts to regain possession.
SUB: Endrick (46’ for Paquetá)—6.0: Ancelotti finally showed some faith in the young forward, who didn’t get many sights of goal but was a focal point and box presence.
SUB: Gabriel Martinelli (66’ for Cunha)—7.4: Delivered the crucial moment when Brazil needed it most, avoiding extra time and potentially penalties.
SUB: Fabinho (90’ for Casemiro)—N/A
SUB: Danilo (90’ for Guimarães)—N/A
Subs not used: Ederson (GK), Weverton (GK), Bremer, Léo Pereira, Roger Ibañez, Éderson, Igor Thiago, Luiz Henrique, Neymar, Alex Sandro.
What the Ratings Tell Us
- Danilo’s sloppy giveaway led to Japan’s opening goal, and the veteran defender was booked again for stopping Daizen Maeda in transition. The right back saw yellow for a reckless challenge on Kieran Tierney last time out, and was fortunate not to pick up a second booking for a mistimed tackle on John McGinn. He’s often been a yard off the pace, and Brazil will continue to be punished as the level of the opponent drifts towards elite.
- "Leave the football before the football leaves you," was the guidance offered to Casemiro by Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher in May 2024. Since then, the multi-time Champions League winner enjoyed an impressive resurgence at Manchester United, but plenty were echoing Carragher’s premature assertion at half-time of this one. However, as he did at Old Trafford, Casemiro bounced back in Houston. After a wretched first half, Casemiro’s useful aerial ability came to the fore to expose a distinct Japanese weakness. After having an effort blocked off the line by Takehiro Tomiyasu, Casemiro emphatically headed home from Gabriel’s cross at the back post.
- There was a newfound emphasis on crossing from Ancelotti after half-time, and Brazil leaned on unfamiliar distributors to get them back into the game. Centerback Gabriel is typically the beneficiary of balls into the box, but he turned creator here.
The Numbers That Explain Brazil’s Turnaround
- Japan stymied Brazil in the opening period, limiting Carlo Ancelotti’s side to eight shots worth just 0.35 xG . However, greater intensity from the Seleção, Ancelotti’s tweaks and Japan’s own passivity allowed Brazil to have its way in the second half. Its xG tally was elevated to 1.72 after 90 minutes, with the bulk of the chances created at the start of the second half.
- Samurai Blue offered close to nothing in attack after scoring. They had just two shots worth 0.05 xG in the final hour of the game.
| Statistic | Brazil | Japan |
|---|---|---|
| Posession | 69% | 31% |
| xG | 1.72 | 0.23 |
| Total Shots | 19 | 5 |
| Shots on Target | 7 | 2 |
| Big Chances | 4 | 0 |
| Pass Accuracy | 92% | 83% |
| Fouls | 4 | 13 |
| Corners | 6 | 2 |
