As Cameroon created history at the Lusail Stadium on Friday by becoming the first-ever African nation to defeat Brazil in a World Cup match, the Latin American football giant wrote its name down in another historic feat – one they won’t be too excited about.
As a result of Vincent Aboubakar‘s outstanding header for Cameroon in the added time, Brazil suffered its first defeat in a World Cup group-stage game in the 21st century. That has not transpired since Norway defeated them on June 23, 1998.
Brazil won the group on goal differential against Switzerland and had already advanced to the round of 16, before the match on Friday. Therefore, the defeat will not sting Tite’s men that much.
“It will be before me – we lost – the first Brazilian coach to lose to an African team, we will have to suffer 24 hours and then we have to start preparing. We feel the loss, and we must feel the loss when we lose. We have to feel it – it is part of the context,” Tite said after the match.
Also read: FIFA World Cup 2022: Cameroon becomes first African nation ever to beat Brazil in tournament
“Who lost? All of us. Our preparation is joint, our wins are joint, our losses are joint. This competition gives us something to think about – it’s food for thought. There’s short time to recover between matches,” he added.
The coach also provided an update on Neymar’s injury after Brazil shared a video of him working out. “Regarding Neymar and Alex Sandro– we have time on our behalf, we have possibilities and let’s wait to see. They’re not yet training with a ball, so we need to observe them there and see how they do,” he clarified.
Also read: Watch: Brazil fans fly ‘Pele get well soon’ flag during FIFA World Cup 2022 match vs Cameroon
“Danilo has been evolving positively – he did intense work with the ball and has adapted functionally positively and he should be able to train normally with the players,” Tite added.
Only Fred and Éder Militao were kept from the victorious team over Switzerland, but Dani Alves was the most notable player. At 39, he added winning cap No. 125 to his impressive resume, tying him with Roberto Carlos for second place among Brazilian players in terms of appearances. He also became his country’s oldest World Cup captain.
Also read: FIFA World Cup 2022: Round of 16 preview
Brazil will be the overwhelming favourite over their opponent South Korea on December 5 with or without Neymar. South Korea slipped into the Round of 16 with a stunning (and pleasant) upset victory over Portugal on Friday. Hwang Hee-chan, a South Korean forward who had missed the first two games due to a hamstring injury, entered the vital game as a replacement; his stealthy stoppage time goal advanced his nation.
