{"id":6143,"date":"2026-07-04T20:14:33","date_gmt":"2026-07-04T20:14:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/play-live.eu\/?p=6143"},"modified":"2026-07-04T20:14:33","modified_gmt":"2026-07-04T20:14:33","slug":"vinicius-junior-cant-just-win-he-has-to-help-brazil-do-it-with-style","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/play-live.eu\/?p=6143","title":{"rendered":"Vin\u00edcius J\u00fanior Can&#039;t Just Win. He Has To Help Brazil Do It With Style."},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"subnav-title ff-ffc bold fs-23 lh-25 uc pd-b-10\">\n            POPULAR SEARCHES\n          <\/p>\n<p class=\"subnav-title ff-ffc bold fs-23 lh-25 uc pd-b-10\">\n            BROWSE BY\n          <\/p>\n<p class=\"ff-h fs-16 lh-1pt6 mg-b-15 article-content\" data-v-a2155f14>Let me take you back to March 2017 at the Under-17 South American championship in Rancagua, south of Santiago in Chile. Brazil\u2019s Under-17 team was facing Colombia in the penultimate match of the South American championship as both aimed to qualify for the U-17 World Cup.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"ff-h fs-16 lh-1pt6 mg-b-15 article-content\" data-v-a2155f14>The teenage squad of the Sele\u00e7\u00e3o won convincingly with a 3-0 result (thus eventually winning the tournament and qualification for the aforementioned World Cup) but of all the future stars on the pitch, of all the talent, it was a 16-year-old phenom from Flamengo who had stolen the headlines.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"ff-h fs-16 lh-1pt6 mg-b-15 article-content\" data-v-a2155f14>Vin\u00edcius J\u00fanior scored a brace in that match against Colombia and the first goal was a piece of art as he lobbed the goalkeeper from outside the box with no hesitation. It was just the beginning of the magic we are now so accustomed to.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><span>Brazil&#8217;s \u00a0Vin\u00edcius J\u00fanior as a young star back in 2017. (Photo by MARTIN BERNETTI \/ AFP via Getty Images)<\/span> <\/p>\n<p class=\"ff-h fs-16 lh-1pt6 mg-b-15 article-content\" data-v-a2155f14>Consequently, he won the awards for top scorer and player of the tournament and a few months later, Real Madrid agreed to sign the young prodigy for nearly \u20ac50 million, the second most expensive transfer of a player in the history of Brazilian football (behind only Neymar). He would eventually join Madrid in July 2018 after his 18th birthday.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"ff-h fs-16 lh-1pt6 mg-b-15 article-content\" data-v-a2155f14>The years have gone by and Vini has won numerous trophies and accolades with the club, including three league titles and two Champions League trophies. But for Brazil, it has been a different story. He only has a runner-up medal at Copa Am\u00e9rica in 2021 to his name, as he wasn\u2019t part of the winning squad for 2019 due to an ankle ligament injury that forced him to miss the tournament. In 2024, after a strong start in the U.S., he was suspended for the quarterfinal loss to Uruguay and once again, his dream of silverware for Brazil disappeared.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><span>Brazil&#8217;s Vinicius Junior at the 2026 World Cup. (Photo by Craig Williamson\/SNS Group via Getty Images)<\/span> <!--&gt;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ff-h fs-16 lh-1pt6 mg-b-15 article-content\" data-v-a2155f14>At the World Cup in 2022, Vinicius was a starter in all but one of Brazil\u2019s five matches and scored his first World Cup goal as part of the team\u2019s 4-1 victory over South Korea in the Round of 16. But the Sele\u00e7\u00e3o eventually lost in the quarterfinal stage to Croatia after a penalty shootout.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ff-h fs-16 lh-1pt6 mg-b-15 article-content\" data-v-a2155f14>So the drought continues for the five-time champions. Brazil hasn't won this esteemed trophy since 2002, when Vinicius was just two years old. And he knows it's not just about winning. It's about winning beautifully.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span>Pele and Brazil winning the 1970 World Cup. (Photo by Alessandro Sabattini\/Getty Images)<\/span> --><\/p>\n<p class=\"ff-h fs-16 lh-1pt6 mg-b-15 article-content\" data-v-a2155f14>The 1970 World Cup victory in Mexico, for example, where Pele \u2013 alongside Jairzinho, G\u00e9rson, Tost\u00e3o and Rivellino \u2014 won in perfect fashion, as well as painting masterpieces of creativity on the pitch that led to a scintillating 4-1 victory over Italy in the final. Or in 2002, when Ronaldo &#8220;O Fenomeno&#8221;\u00a0Nazario, one of my heroes as a teenager, with the likes of Rivaldo, Ronaldinho and Cafu, also won every match, including the final over Germany and earning redemption after losing to France four years earlier.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><span>Ronaldo of Brazil after winning the 2002 World Cup. (Photo by Andreas Rentz\/Bongarts\/Getty Images)<\/span> <!--&gt;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ff-h fs-16 lh-1pt6 mg-b-15 article-content\" data-v-a2155f14>Vini is on a mission to write another page in Brazilian history, after so much disappointment and criticism, including numerous instances of unwarranted and despicable racial abuse and beratement. But he has persevered and danced his way into success and the Round of 16 of the World Cup.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ff-h fs-16 lh-1pt6 mg-b-15 article-content\" data-v-a2155f14>And so here we are. Another step toward destiny awaits in New Jersey, a skip and a jump from the site of Pel\u00e9\u2019s final match in 1977 when the New York Cosmos faced Santos at the former home of the New York Giants.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ff-h fs-16 lh-1pt6 mg-b-15 article-content\" data-v-a2155f14>The question is: will the music keep playing for him after Sunday, and can Brazil finally break the 24-year drought?\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ff-h fs-16 lh-1pt6 mg-b-15 article-content\" data-v-a2155f14>There is a sense that, slowly but surely, that Vinicius \u2013 under the tutelage of Carlo Ancelotti \u2013 is finally finding form and identity. So far, he has been magnificent, with four goals and one assist, but more than that \u2014 he is a threat against the opponent every time he heads towards goal.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span>Carlo Ancelotti has a special relationship with Vinicius Juniro. (Photo by Hannah Peters - FIFA\/FIFA via Getty Images)<\/span> --><\/p>\n<p class=\"ff-h fs-16 lh-1pt6 mg-b-15 article-content\" data-v-a2155f14>Sunday&#8217;s contest against Erling Haaland and Norway will not be a contest where Brazil will look as the outright favorite. It might have the odds in its favor and, historically, it will have an edge. But Norway, at its strongest, is extremely well coached and with the likes of Haaland, Martin Odegaard and Antonio Nusa\u2014it can definitely become a headache on Sunday.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"ff-h fs-16 lh-1pt6 mg-b-15 article-content\" data-v-a2155f14>I have seen both play at this tournament and they equally offer strengths and weaknesses. The fans also play a massive factor and with Norway, the &#8220;Viking Row&#8221; has become the 12th man pushing the team to strong victories.<\/p>\n<p><span>Erling Haaland and Norway will be a formidable opponent. (Getty)<\/span> <!--&gt;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ff-h fs-16 lh-1pt6 mg-b-15 article-content\" data-v-a2155f14>But here is where the relationship between Vinicius and Ancelotti becomes a factor. The Italian manager knows Vinicius well from his days in Madrid, helping him find his own identity and self-worth in a team full of superstars. He also made him more prominent in a central role and allowed him to see how he can be a threat from out wide and as a more central attacker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ff-h fs-16 lh-1pt6 mg-b-15 article-content\" data-v-a2155f14>In fact,\u00a0<u>per Opta<\/u>, he has the most carries into the opponent\u2019s box (18) than anyone else in the tournament and has the most\u00a0xG of any player (3.87) and attempted the second-most shots on target (10). Numbers aside, this has been about Ancelotti molding a leader and a humble teammate. Someone who will do everything to drive his team to victory.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ff-h fs-16 lh-1pt6 mg-b-15 article-content\" data-v-a2155f14>Vin\u00edcius knows that a lot rests on his shoulders because he is now a creative centerpiece for Brazil and even with Neymar in the squad, it is Vin\u00edcius who must take Brazil to the promised land once again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ff-h fs-16 lh-1pt6 mg-b-15 article-content\" data-v-a2155f14>This has also been a long journey for Vin\u00edcius, who has been in the spotlight for more than a decade, and it\u2019s incredible to sometimes remember he is still only 25. But none of this matters to him, because he knows Sunday\u2019s match is the most important of his international career.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"ff-h fs-16 lh-1pt6 mg-b-15 article-content\" data-v-a2155f14>We will see. All I know is that if Brazil wants to be back on July 19, it needs the very best of Vin\u00edcius J\u00fanior.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"color:var(-color-text-primary);font-family:inherit;font-size:18px;font-weight:700;line-height:1.25;margin:0;min-width:0\">Through Brilliance And Bravery, Cape Verde Epitomized The Beauty Of The World Cup<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"color:var(-color-text-primary);font-family:inherit;font-size:18px;font-weight:700;line-height:1.25;margin:0;min-width:0\">GOAT Greatness: All Of Lionel Messi's World Cup Goals, Ranked<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"color:var(-color-text-primary);font-family:inherit;font-size:18px;font-weight:700;line-height:1.25;margin:0;min-width:0\">The Last Dance Continues As Lionel Messi \u2013 Once Again \u2013 Carries Argentina<\/p>\n\n--><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>POPULAR SEARCHES BROWSE BY Let me take you back to March 2017 at the Under-17 South American championship in Rancagua, south of Santiago in Chile. Brazil\u2019s Under-17 team was facing Colombia in the penultimate match of the South American championship as both aimed to qualify for the U-17 World Cup.\u00a0 The teenage squad of the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":6142,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6143","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-soccer"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/play-live.eu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6143","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/play-live.eu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/play-live.eu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/play-live.eu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6143"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/play-live.eu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6143\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/play-live.eu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6142"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/play-live.eu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6143"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/play-live.eu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6143"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/play-live.eu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6143"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}