Carlo Ancelotti gave an honest assessment of his team’s performance following the draw against Morocco.
Brazil national team head coach Carlo Ancelotti has openly admitted to feeling worried and unsatisfied following the Seleção’s difficult 1-1 opening draw against Morocco at the MetLife Stadium.
The five-time world champions struggled during a sloppy first half, consistently losing possession and individual duels under the high-intensity pressing deployed by Mohamed Ouahbi’s Atlas Lions.
Morocco capitalised on Brazil’s vulnerability, ripping their defence apart to free up Ismael Saibari, who fired them into a deserved 21st-minute lead, before Real Madrid talisman Vinícius Júnior managed to rescue a share of the spoils with a 31st-minute equaliser.
“I think we didn’t start very well; I’m a little worried. We lost a lot of duels and possession, but we improved in the second half of a difficult match because Morocco is a good team,” Ancelotti candidly stated in his post-match assessment, per FIFA.com.
“In the first half, we had difficulty getting out of the pressure; we could have had more control. [Was I] Satisfied? Not really. I expected a better start. But things can happen. Now I’m going to focus on the next game.”
Margin for error narrows for Seleção.
The resulting stalemate has triggered consequences in Group C, with Morocco remaining ahead of Brazil to claim sole possession of the temporary pole position.
As Pulse Sports reported, because both teams are locked on exactly 1 point, a neutral 0 goal difference, and 1 goal scored, the tiebreaker reverted to FIFA’s team-conduct criteria.
Brazil received two yellow cards in the game: Casemiro and Roger Ibañez, whereas Morocco had zero bookings.
While Ancelotti acknowledged that his team significantly improved their rhythm and control during the second half, the slip-up narrows their margin for error in their quest to break a 24-year World Cup title drought.
The former Chelsea boss will hope to iron out the kinks before Brazil return to the pitch for their second group fixture against Haiti on Saturday, June 20, at Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, before facing Scotland in Miami.