Humbled by the Socceroos and savaged by their own media, Brazil have gone to ground ahead of Tuesday night’s rematch in Brisbane, with coach Carlo Ancelotti scrapping plans for a public appearance to experiment with his under-fire team behind closed doors.
The Seleção were due to hold an open training session on Monday afternoon at Suncorp Stadium, enabling local fans to get an up-close glimpse of the five-time world champions and their array of superstars, but at Ancelotti’s insistence, sources say, training was moved to Ballymore, away from the prying eyes of supporters and reporters.
The late change comes amid fierce criticism from Brazilian media of Ancelotti and his players, who needed a last-gasp header from AFC Bournemouth star Rayan to salvage a 1-1 draw with Australia and avoid what would have been an embarrassing defeat in Townsville on Friday night.
One of Brazil’s most prominent football commentators, Mauro Cezar Pereira, described Ancelotti’s work thus far with the national team as “pathetic”, and said the Seleção remain without a clear tactical identity or structure. Another writer, UOL columnist Milton Neves, was even more blunt after watching them struggle against the Socceroos, who Brazil had outscored 21-1 in their eight previous meetings: “If Brazil struggle to draw with Australia, who are they going to beat?”
Ancelotti described the draw as a fair result in his post-match press conference, but blamed the poor surface at Queensland Country Bank Stadium for some of Brazil’s problems and urged supporters to be patient as he attempts to rebuild the team for the next World Cup cycle.
Other reports out of Brazil suggest that the legendary Italian coach is seeking to address their shortcomings in midfield with a different formation, having used a 4-3-3 shape at training over the weekend, while foreshadowing as many as seven personnel changes, trialling an entirely new back four and goalkeeper.
Brazil have rescheduled their final public appearance on Aussie soil for Thursday morning, ahead of their departure for India for another friendly on Saturday, with the added demands of significant cross-continental travel also factoring into Ancelotti’s rotation plans.
It all heightens what Tony Popovic described as a “wonderful” challenge for the Socceroos, who took enormous confidence from their performance in Townsville, but know they will have to be even better to get a result in the rematch, given the intense scrutiny Brazil are facing back home.
“What we don’t have yet that Brazil has, in terms of their players, is we’re not accustomed to playing top-level opposition every four days,” Popovic said.
“Our players are not at that level yet. We don’t have players playing regularly in the Champions League or in the top leagues where you’re playing every four days, 60 games a year, so this is a great test for us to see can we back up physically, can we back up mentally, can we back up with the quality that we showed with and without the ball?
“That’s why we’re playing Brazil, and we’re delighted that they did come to Australia to give us this huge test. I expect it to be difficult, but it’s what we want. It’s what we wanted from these two games.”
One player Popovic need not worry about backing up, and who embodies the kind of sustained excellence he wants to see from his players, is Aziz Behich, whose remarkable durability continues to belie his age and lack of recent game time.
The veteran defender, 35, is the only A-League player in the Socceroos squad, and with the domestic season yet to begin in Australia, he hasn’t played a minute of competitive football since the World Cup, but still managed to pull out a sensational 90-minute shift at left wing-back in Townsville.
It was Behich’s 88th cap, taking him past Alex Tobin and into outright sixth for all-time Socceroos appearances – and with Kasey Bos, the younger brother of injured star Jordan, the only other natural left-sided defender in the squad, it would be no surprise if Behich was asked to do it all again in Brisbane.
“I’m always someone that takes pride in looking after my body,” Behich said. “Even on holidays, I don’t get carried away, and I think that’s why I’m still going now.
“I felt great out there, and I’ve recovered really well as well. I’ve had a good pre-season. My data shows that I’ve been working hard, and probably some of my best scores are at [Melbourne] City since I’ve signed at the club, which is not normal.
“I’m a player that’s always honest with myself, so I know when I’m not at a level that I should be. But at the moment, I feel like I’ve still got a lot in the tank to give.”
Behich said he felt the Socceroos had earned international “respect” for the enterprising way they played against Brazil, but warned that once is not enough to properly change perceptions.
“We need to do that again, that’s for sure,” he said.
