Matheus Cunha leads Brazil past Haiti, but Raphinha’s injury cloud prevails

PHILADELPHIA — In front of a sellout crowd of 68,324, Brazil started the process of getting things back on track with a 3-0 win Haiti of Group stage for the 2026 World Cupbut it is a game that brings more worries than Carlo Ancelotti’s answers as he looks to face the great pressure that comes with managing the Selecao. The joy of This is Matheus Cunha’s place brace was canceled due to injury to Raph as a game that started with Brazil’s brilliance which led to an uncomfortable finish. It was also a game that saw Haiti become the first team to be eliminated from the playoffs due to an already-defeated defeat In Scotland.

Raphinha’s hamstring injury is one Ancelotti said will be assessed on Sunday, but after the game, Vinicius Junior expressed his sorrow for his team-mate, who battled through injuries to be here after a challenging season with Barcelona. He hopes that it is nothing and that Raphinha will be able to continue the competition with Brazil, and the team needs him very much to find the balance.

The Haitian fans started the match enjoying the approval of Jose Mourinho, but against a team with attacking skills like Brazil, which could last for a long time. Matheus Cunha’s first-half goal confirmed Ancelotti’s changes, bringing in the Manchester United man Igor Thiago and Danilo Roger Ibanez.

It took 23 minutes for Cunha to break through the Haitian defence, but the second time it happened, the floodgates were opened, Brazil poured on them and roamed the middle of the game, but despite the crooked ball, it could spell disaster for their chances in the knockout stages.

In the 40th minute, Raphinha was taken out of the game due to an unrelated injury, and his place was taken by Rayan. Although it was not a classic game when Raphinha got a goal disallowed for being offside and failed to legitimately create a chance, Brazil’s best attacking line at the moment is Raphinha, Vinicius Junior, and Matheus Cunha, but losing part of those three puts a lot of pressure on others, and it shows in the second half.

After scoring goals, the Brazilian fans were also silent; Vini Jr. he pressed too hard, which led to missed chances, and the carefully selected balance Ancelotti needs for this team to play at its best has slipped. The crowd erupted when Endrick put the ball in the net, until press time they celebrated when the offside flag was raised. Like the day in Brazil, it was the right process that ended up producing the wrong result.

One of the side’s leaders, Vini Jr., is aware of these missed opportunities, but trusting how Ancelotti wants the team set up could help change that going forward. All it takes is back-to-back multi-goal games, and they can start putting things together.

“It depends on the game and more on the opponent, today I played in a different position, where the coach asked me to play inside between the two defenders,” said Vini Jr. “The truth is that I don’t play there very often, but whenever the coach asks me, and says that I have to play there, I score goals, so I have to always listen to him. Of course, when I get to the locker room, he will say that he understands football well.”

It is clear that this is a flawed squad as they play with 25 men while I hope so Neymar He can play a role in this tournament, but even with those mistakes, the chances that Brazil asked for a united team were able to take care of them. Now, with four points, Brazil is almost guaranteed a place in the knock-out stage of the tournament, but unless they can fix these problems, the World Cup will quickly end once it gets there.

Neymar may return soon as Ancelotti clarified his condition in the press conference after the match. With a team win on the line, Brazil will need all the help they can get, and there’s a chance Neymar could provide a lift as one talented player may now miss out.

“Neymar will train tomorrow alone, then on Monday he will train with the whole team. He will be there for the game against Scotland,” said Ancelotti.

There will be another chance to make things right in the final group stage match, as Brazil face Scotland on June 24 with a chance to win the group.