Uruguay defeated Brazil in a penalty shootout at Copa America 2024, sending home the fourth ranked team in the world in the quarter-finals.
Brazil had an underwhelming group stage at , only securing one victory and settling for second place of Group D behind . While James Rodriguez and co. got to face in the quarter-finals, Selecao must take on Uruguay, the Group C winners, without Vinicius Jr., who is serving a suspension for yellow card accumulation.
How the game unfolded
As soon as the match kicked off, Brazil were on the back foot. Uruguay enjoyed near-constant possession for the first 25 minutes, pinning the Selecao in their own half. Marcelo Bielsa’s squad had a few good looks on goal, including two dangerous headers from , but for all their dominance, they failed to register a shot on target.
and slowly got Brazil back into the game, using their speed on the counter attack to produce Brazil’s first chances of the match, but they both lacked the quality in the final third to truly test . Harsh fouls quickly became the story of the rest of the half, eliminating any fluidity in the final 15 minutes. Both sides retreated down the tunnel deadlocked at 0-0.
Unfortunately, the second half was filled with more poor touches and heavy challenges from both sides that led to continued broken play. Tensions reached a boiling point when committed a dangerous foul on , lunging in studs up and making direct contact with the winger’s ankle. Originally, the Uruguayan was shown a yellow, but after a VAR review, he was sent off in the 75th minute.
Despite being a man up, the Selecao could not produce any noteworthy chances in the final 15 minutes of the game. The match ended with 41 fouls before coming down to an inevitable penalty shootout. and missed penalties for Brazil. Although and buried their chances, and made one save, it was not enough to deny Uruguay.
La Celeste advanced 4-2 on penalty kicks to the semifinals, sending Brazil home.
Brazil player ratings (4-3-3)
GK: Alisson – 6/10 – Alisson kept a clean sheet against a team that scored nine goals in their three group stage matches. The Liverpool keeper saved one penalty in the shootout, but it was not enough to send Brazil through to the semifinals.
RB: – 5/10 – For a second straight game, Danilo lacked any influence on Brazil’s attack. Plus, when he tried to push forward, he left Militao exposed, forcing the player to defend out wide in one on one situations.
CB: Marquinhos – 6/10 – Marquinhos did well alongside Militao to keep Brazil’s third clean sheet of the tournament.
CB: Eder Militao – 6/10 – Militao was the best defender on the pitch tonight. Whether it was last ditch tackles or locking down Darwin Nunez, the Real Madrid man was instrumental in keeping Uruguay off the scoresheet. He also did well to cover for Danilo when the right-back was out of position. Militao missed a penalty for Brazil.
LB: – 5/10 – Arana was a surprise addition to Dorival Junior’s starting XI. He was solid defensively, but he had no memorable moments.
CM: Joao Gomes – 5/10 – Gomes struggled to keep up with the pace of Uruguay’s midfield, so much so that the Brazilian resorted to poor fouls as a means to stop La Celeste.
CM: – 5/10 – Bruno failed to get on the ball and slow down the tempo of the game, but was combative in the midfield. He had little help from the players around him.
CM: – 5/10 – After getting subbed off at halftime against Colombia, Paqueta did not bounce back tonight. The midfielder was virtually invisible and did not make an impact in any facet of the match.
RW: Raphinha – 6/10 – Raphinha had Brazil’s best chances of the first half, but the man lacked the end product. He was solid tracking back on defense, though, to help his team when they did not have the ball.
ST: Endrick – 6/10 – Endrick’s pace adds a different dimension to Brazil’s attack, but his small frame let him down tonight as the striker struggled with the physicality of the match. Ultimately, the future Real Madrid player needed to be more selfish in the final third.
LW: Rodrygo – 6/10 – Rodrygo had a quiet first half, but the winger grew into the game as he found himself on the ball much more in the second half. He took on Nahitan Nandez, using his close control dribbling skills, and ultimately forced the defender to commit a red card offense.
Substitutes
SUB: Savio – 5/10 – Savio looked lively up top, but the substitute could not find the breakthrough for Brazil.
SUB: Douglas Luiz – 4/10 – Douglas Luiz came on with fresh legs to pressure Uruguay in the final minutes of the match. He missed a penalty in the shootout.
SUB: Andreas Pereira – 5/10 – Pereira came on the pitch in the 82nd minute and almost immediately made a poor challenge that gifted Uruguay a dangerous free kick and subsequent corner. The substitute scored a huge penalty after Militao’s miss.
SUB: Gabriel Martinelli – N/A – Martinelli came on for penalties, and he delivered.
SUB: – N/A – Evanilson came on in the 87th minute.
Manager
Dorival Junior – 6/10 – Brazil traveled to the United States this summer as one of the favorites to win Copa America 2024, but they failed to leave any lasting impression in three of their four matches. Dorival Junior continues to start the same midfield that has lacked vision, creativity, and control, and relies too heavily on his wingers to beat defenders one on one to create goalscoring opportunities.
Exiting the Copa America in the quarter-finals as the fourth ranked team in the world is a disappointing result for the Selecao, and Dorival Junior will have to answer for his team’s poor tournament.