Preview
Brazil are gearing up for their fourth and final group-stage fixture in the 2021 Copa America, taking on Ecuador in what should be an interesting tie. These two South American sides will ball it out on Sunday at the Estádio Olímpico Pedro Ludovico Teixeira as the Selecao look to head into the quarter-finals with another win in the bag.
Tite's side have already secured progression to the knockout stage. With three victories from their opening three fixtures, the five-time World Cup winners have little left to play for besides a confidence-boosting result. Their most recent outing was their 2-1 triumph over Colombia and while the Brazilians came away with all three points in that game, it was not a convincing display from Neymar and Co.
The hosts would have lost against Los Cafeteros had it not been for Roberto Firmino's 78th-minute equalizer and Casemiro's winning goal in the 10th minute of added time. Regardless, no team has outperformed the defending champions so far, having beaten Venezuela 3-0 and Peru 4-0 in their first two fixtures.
Brazil have scored a whopping nine times, averaging three goals per game, almost twice that of the second-highest nation Paraguay (5 goals). Furthermore, Tite's back four boast the best defensive record in the tournament, tied with bitter rivals Argentina for least number of goals conceded (one).
As a result, anything short of a successful title defense will likely be deemed a failure by the fans and critics, given that a shortcoming is undesirable in the year leading up to the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. Regardless, the Selecao mustn't get ahead of themselves and should focus on beating Ecuador, with all signs pointing to a routine victory over La Tri.
Their opening fixture was a frustrating but expected 1-0 loss to Colombia, but the two fixtures that followed ended in utter disappointment. On Matchday 2, Gustavo Alfaro's appeared destined to beat Venezuela 2-1 only to concede an injury-time equalizer and settle for a point. Round three saw them take on Peru and take a commanding 2-0 lead only to throw away that advantage en route to a 2-2 stalemate. As a result, Ecuador sit in fourth, thus holding the final Group B ticket to the quarter-finals. However, Venezuela, who are in fifth, are only behind on goal difference and face a more favorable opponent in the form of Peru. La Tri will need a fortunate set of results in order to secure progression.
Team news
Ecuador: Alfaro has no injury concerns heading into this tie, meaning the only issue in need of solving is picking the right lineup for stealing a result against Brazil. La Tri will likely remain unchanged, opting for the starting Xi that starred against Venezuela, meaning Valencia and Campana in attack with
Brazil: With two goals and two assists under his belt, Neymar will continue to spearhead the Selecao's attack. Thiago Silva, who overcame his UEFA Champions League final injury, will likely return to the bench in favor of a Marquinhos-Militao center-back partnership. Tite has no injuries to contend with Preciado, Arboleda, Hincapie, and Estupinan being the back four.
Key stats
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Ecuador haven't scored against Brazil in a competitive showdown since 2011.
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The Selecao are unbeaten in their last six encounters with La Tri, winning five and drawing once.
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Tite's side remain unbeaten in competitive games since their 2018 FIFA World Cup quarter-final defeat against Beligum.
Broadcast listings
Match details, result and original broadcast info
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