English 
Sorprendentes, pero podrían eliminar fácilmente a la selección brasileña
It’s strange to talk about paper form in an England-Brazilian clash, but the fact is that the odds of an England win are under double against Brazil at the bookmakers. The South American’s poor form, a reserve squad, a debutant coach and a crisis in the federation could all be strong arguments for a home success.
Because Brazil is not in the best position on any stage. It is almost irrelevant that the Selecao are in 6th position in the World Cup qualifiers, which is still worth qualifying for, so there is no realistic threat to Richarlison’s trip. However, the 1(!) point against Venezuela, Uruguay, Colombia, Argentina is extremely ominous, which could be linked to the problems of the federation.
Tité, who took charge in 2016, left after an inglorious World Cup, at which time Carlo Ancelotti looked set to take over his legacy. The Italian legend was due to take over from interim boss Fernandon Diniz in the summer of 2024, with a semi-official announcement already made, but Carletto had in the meantime extended his contract in the Spanish capital, a warning sign that something was amiss in football’s motherland.
The problems can be traced back to the Brazilian Football Federation, where an invalid presidential election led to an interim leadership, followed by a new presidential election with the involvement of the Public Prosecutor’s Office.
Following a customer drama based on local soap operas, Diniz was very quickly dumped, partly because of a poor start and partly because the federation’s long-serving new president, Ednaldo Rodrigues, wants a permanent solution. And that could be 61-year-old Dorival Júnior, who will make his debut from the bench at Wembley in what is expected to be a tough game.
Neymar’s role with the new captain could also be exciting, as the Al-Hilal player once rebelled against Dorival Júnior as a young talent, and was eventually sacked by Santos for his actions.
Neymar will miss England this time due to injury, as will several other players from the Selecao. With Martinelli, Gabriel Jesus, Casemiro, Maquinhos, Renan Lodi, Emerson Royal, Éder Militao, Ederson and Alisson all unavailable for one reason or another, Júnior will have to prove himself with a very full squad. In addition to three debutant goalkeepers, only four players have at least 21 caps and a total of 11 could make their Wembley debut. This is hardly a solid answer as to why Brazil are such underdogs.
Interestingly, it is 22 years since the two teams played a competitive match, when the Selecao won the World Cup quarter-final 2-1. This will be their sixth pre-season match since then.
Following the World Cup defeat, England have picked up where they left off, although this time they have fallen short of a spotless record in the qualifiers for the European Championship. There’s not really much of substance at the moment for Gareth Southgate’s side, with the Tricolor not facing the kind of crisis they have on the South American continent.
Predicted Lineups
England: Pickford; Walker, Stones, Maguire, Gomez; Foden, Rice, Bellingham; Bowen, Watkins, Rashford
Brazil: Bento; Danilo, Bremer, Beraldo, Wendell; Guimaraes, Luiz; Raphinha, Rodrygo, Vinicius Jr; Richarlison
Of course, there will still be some absentees, with Trippier retiring from selection, while Reece James, Nick Pope, Jack Grealish, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Mason Mount are all out injured.
What is the best free pick for England-Brazil?
It’s not really worth drawing parables from the past or talking about Brazil’s history at the moment, as this will be a very new line-up for the sides. At Wembley, even the best England team would probably not be underdogs against the best Brazilian team, but the above factors tell us that in extreme cases, this could be a knockout.
