1 hour ago
9
Key events
Is the main point of interest now goal difference, to determine whether Brazil or Morocco finish top of the group?
Haiti’s xG is zero. See you for the second half in a bit.
I think we have an answer to the half-past kick-off conundrum. Over to Helio Felix:
“9.30 PM (local time in Rio, São Paulo, etc) is a traditional time for Brazilian games, mainly during working days (for example, the Wednesday night games of the Brazilian football league on TV). It is due to the main TV channel (Globo), that prefers this time to fit its schedule (after nightly news and after the traditional daily soap opera). Brazilian TV certainly made that request to FIFA.”
Marcos, from the hydration break, is back. “Matheus Cunha is an excellent striker running in behind and being that fox in the box. Casemiro has been great at breaking up the play, Guimarães has progressed the ball well, and what is there to say about Paquetá’s moments of magic over the top? Turns out that compared to Ancelotti and his staff, I DKSAF (don’t know s*** about football).”
Obviously 3-0 is a very welcome scoreline for Brazil, but their play has been far from sparkling. They remain very much a work in progress.
Half-time: Brazil 3-0 Haiti
Routine stuff for the Selecao in Philadelphia. They have hardly broken sweat but still found three goals in the opening half of a World Cup match for the first time since 2002.
45+6 mins: Paqueta does well defensively now, sliding to cut out a dangerous ball into the right channel by Bellegarde. That was a promising opportunity building after Cunha misplaced a pass.
45+4 mins: Pierrot is the second Haitian in the book. He led with his arm in a heading contest with Gabriel.
Routine from Brazil. Brilliant from the maligned Paqueta, receiving the ball on the half turn and releasing it in an instant over the Haitian defence, catching them flatfooted. Vinicius is too quick, too composed, and accepts the opportunity with the minimum of fuss.
GOAL! Brazil 3-0 Haiti (Vinicius 45+3)
Why bother assisting when it’s easier to score.
45+2 mins: Lovely skill from Vinicius to turn out of trouble on the left touchline, allowing him to hare off towards the penalty box. His square ball, not for the first time tonight, is well read by Haiti and does not lead to a chance.
45 mins: Six minutes of stoppage time at the end of the half.
43 mins: Casimir has to remain off the field for a minute after receiving treatment, so Brazil have a man advantage as they knock the ball around straightforwardly. The host broadcaster spends a lengthy amount of time talking about the Mexican Wave rolling around The Linc. A sure sign there is more action in the stands than on the pitch.
42 mins: Very stop-start group stage areas so far in Philadelphia. Very little urgency or jeopardy to speak of.
40 mins: Haiti go long early into the right channel and Casimir is first to it but his square ball fails to find a teammate. The No 21 then goes down off the ball for some reason.
39 mins: There’s a little delay while Raphinha receives some treatment. He doesn’t look especially crocked, but there is a quizzical look on his face. He is making his way from the field, accepting commiserations from Alisson and Vinicius en route. I wonder what’s happened? It must be something internal, perhaps an ailment he brought into the fixture?
Bournemouth teenager Rayan comes on.
Haiti come again, profiting from a poor vertical ball towards three blue shirted runners that is easily intercepted. It requires a vintage Casemiro go-go-gadget telescopic leg to break up play. Then Brazil get to work on the counter, exploiting the broken play.
Vinicius Jr drives forward, spots Cunha running the angle ahead of him, slips him through, and the Man Utd man hammers a left-footed shot into the roof of the net from inside the box, off-balance. Superb finish.
GOAL! Brazil 2-0 Haiti (Cunha, 36)
No doubt about this one. That is all Matheus Cunha.
34 mins: Haiti enjoy a couple of repeat phases of attack and force a corner on the left. Bellegarde hoists it over but Brazil head away. Vinicius is then fortunate his poor clearance is miscontroled in midfield.
32 mins: Nice interplay on the left, started by Douglas, driven by Paqueta, and wasted by Vinicius, who fails to time the final ball into the box.
31 mins: Raphinha is a little fortunate to avoid a booking for catching Experience late.
30 mins: Vinicius is flagged offside on the left, Brazil’s fifth indiscretion of that nature already.
27 mins: Douglas turns a throw-in into a hospital pass that Bellegarde almost fashions into an opportunity. It works out well for Brazil though who are allowed space to work the ball quickly through the transitional defence to Raphinha but he can’t find any penetration coming in off the right.
“As a Brazilian who watched the previous match with family, we all collectively agreed two major things,” this is Marcos, not me, by the way.
“1. We need a proper #9, Endrick, who is a clinical finisher and creates the space. Igor Thiago was poor and Matheus Cunha is not a striker.
2. The midfield needed to be completely ripped up. Casemiro looked slow and off the pace, the less said about Paquetá the better, and Guimarães was mediocre and didn’t look forwards enough.
Neither of these happened, and we’re seeing the result. But as I was writing this email, we scored, so maybe I should just trust Ancelotti, eh?”
Time for a hydration break and a chance for me to purge my brain of the only thing I ever think of whenever “on the hour” is mentioned. Enjoy the debut stylings of Alan Partridge on the wireless from many moons ago.
Vinicius Jr cut in from the left, curled a decent effort that Placide parried, but the ball rebounded into the danger zone where Delacroix and Cunha each stuck out boots with the ball bobbling over the line off one of them. Cunha accepts the plaudits and pulls out the surfing celebration he perfected with Manchester United last season.
GOAL! Brazil 1-0 Haiti (Cunha, 23)
Brazil open the scoring. Was it an og or was it Cunha’s?
22 mins: Haiti try to counter but leave themselves exposed in transition. Guimaraes is onto the loose ball and feeds an inch perfect throughball for Raphinha to dart onto, approach Placide, dink the ball over the onrushing keeper, and watch it dribble wide!
21 mins: Brazil earn another corner, this time on the left, but like the others it fails to create any threat.
21 mins: Public service announcement: does anyone know why this match is kicking off at half-past, not on the hour? I don’t.
20 mins: There is a real lack of vim to Brazil. Laboured in possession, passive in defence. Haiti almost unlock them down the right but Arcus is offside on the overlap. This feels like one of those mid-90s tactical games of chess, not the five-time champions versus a team with a 100% lose rate.
18 mins: The delivery is a decent one, swinging in left-footed from the right. Placide flaps but gets enough to divert the first effort away, then Vinicius has a shot deflected wide for another set piece. This one is headed away with authority.
17 mins: Casemiro again looks for Raphinha over the top. Haiti cover and concede a corner.
15 mins: “I agree on Paqueta,” emails Robert Speed. “His repeated selection is proof that the legacy of the great Brazilian midfielders is well and truly over. He is a very poor player in my view.” Also, that as may be, in a match like this, why not just play a striker?
14 mins: Haiti are happy to let Brazil stroke the ball across defence and midfield, retaining their defensive structure. The Selecao are not desperate to play anything vertical or through the lines.
