The Brazilian team’s lineup for its debut at the 2026 World Cup remains under complete mystery. Coach Carlo Ancelotti led an activity in the early afternoon of this Tuesday, in New Jersey, in the United States, but did not give any clues about the starting team in the 15 minutes in which the work was open to the press.
Striker Neymar remained out of activities with the ball on the pitch. The player remained doing physical exercises at the gym. According to the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF), the star undergoes regular exams and is showing good clinical progress, although his presence in the debut match has not yet been confirmed.
During the short period of access for journalists in New Jersey, Carlo Ancelotti had 25 athletes available. The players performed an initial warm-up and began working with the ball. The coach chose to separate the group into two blocks at the beginning of the tactical movement.
The initial division brought a group wearing vests, composed of Ibañez, Marquinhos, Léo Pereira, Douglas Santos, Casemiro, Bruno Guimarães, Éderson, Matheus Cunha, Gabriel Martinelli, Raphinha and Luiz Henrique. The rest of those called up worked without their distinctive clothing. Despite the separation, the technical committee did not indicate whether the athletes wearing vests would form the basis of the main team.
Carlo Ancelotti maintains historic turnover in technical command
The mystery adopted in New Jersey reinforces a trademark of the Italian coach’s management. Carlo Ancelotti used 12 completely different lineups in the 12 matches in which he was in charge of the national team. This volatility in the preparation phase leading up to the world tournament is a rare pattern in the Brazilian team’s recent decades, which increases tactical unpredictability for opponents.
Despite the constant variation of names and tactical schemes in previous friendlies, the commander recently stated, shortly after the 2-1 victory against Egypt, that he already has the ideal strategy and names defined in his mind for the initial clash in the tournament.
Recent tests have modified the offensive sector and sides
In the last preparatory matches, the coach made profound changes to the team’s structure. In the match played at Maracanã against the Egyptian team, Alex Sandro occupied the left flank, while the attack was formed by a quartet with Matheus Cunha, Luiz Henrique, Vini Jr. and Raphinha.
Last Saturday, in the friendly held in Cleveland against Panama, Ancelotti changed the pieces. Douglas Santos took over on the left flank and the offensive sector gained new options with the addition of Lucas Paquetá and Igor Thiago, consolidating the period of experimentation before the official debut.
Brazil’s schedule in Group C of the World Cup
The Brazilian team returns to training this Wednesday, starting at 12pm (Brasília time), continuing its preparation on American soil. The official debut in the competition takes place next Saturday, at 7pm, against Morocco, at the Metlife Stadium, in New Jersey.
After the duel against the Moroccans, Brazil will fulfill the following commitments in the first phase of the competition:
- Haiti: June 19
- Scotland: June 24