EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Brazil were left reflecting on a costly early penalty miss after their 2-1 defeat to Norway in the World Cup Round of 16, with coach Carlo Ancelotti explaining why midfielder Bruno Guimarães, rather than star forward Vinícius Júnior, took the spot kick.Brazil had the chance to take an early lead after a VAR review awarded a penalty for a foul on Matheus Cunha. Although Vinícius initially appeared set to take the kick, he handed the ball to Guimarães, whose effort was saved by Norway goalkeeper Ørjan Nyland in the 14th minute.Ancelotti said the decision was based on the team’s penalty hierarchy, which had been determined through long-term statistical analysis.”We chose Bruno Guimarães because we felt he was the best option on the field at that point,” the Italian coach said, noting that regular penalty takers Neymar and Raphinha were unavailable at the time, with Neymar still on the bench and Raphinha sidelined by injury.Nyland’s save proved pivotal as Norway held firm before securing a historic 2-1 victory to eliminate the five-time world champions. Brazil did not score until Neymar converted a late penalty deep into stoppage time after coming off the bench in the second half.The defeat marked Brazil’s earliest World Cup exit since 1990 and their first failure to reach the quarterfinals since losing to Argentina in the Round of 16 that year.Captain Marquinhos apologized to Brazilian supporters after the match and accepted responsibility for the disappointing campaign.”We have to apologize to the Brazilian people,” he said. “We have to learn from our mistakes. I’m one of the older players, and we have to take the blame so the next generation can move forward.”Neymar’s late penalty saw him join Pelé as only the second Brazilian player to score in four different World Cups, but it was not enough to prevent another painful elimination for a nation still chasing its first World Cup title since 2002.
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Brazil were left reflecting on a costly early penalty miss after their 2-1 defeat to Norway in the World Cup Round of 16, with coach Carlo Ancelotti explaining why midfielder Bruno Guimarães, rather than star forward Vinícius Júnior, took the spot kick.Brazil had the chance to take an early lead after a VAR review awarded a penalty for a foul on Matheus Cunha. Although Vinícius initially appeared set to take the kick, he handed the ball to Guimarães, whose effort was saved by Norway goalkeeper Ørjan Nyland in the 14th minute.Ancelotti said the decision was based on the team’s penalty hierarchy, which had been determined through long-term statistical analysis.”We chose Bruno Guimarães because we felt he was the best option on the field at that point,” the Italian coach said, noting that regular penalty takers Neymar and Raphinha were unavailable at the time, with Neymar still on the bench and Raphinha sidelined by injury.Nyland’s save proved pivotal as Norway held firm before securing a historic 2-1 victory to eliminate the five-time world champions. Brazil did not score until Neymar converted a late penalty deep into stoppage time after coming off the bench in the second half.The defeat marked Brazil’s earliest World Cup exit since 1990 and their first failure to reach the quarterfinals since losing to Argentina in the Round of 16 that year.Captain Marquinhos apologized to Brazilian supporters after the match and accepted responsibility for the disappointing campaign.”We have to apologize to the Brazilian people,” he said. “We have to learn from our mistakes. I’m one of the older players, and we have to take the blame so the next generation can move forward.”Neymar’s late penalty saw him join Pelé as only the second Brazilian player to score in four different World Cups, but it was not enough to prevent another painful elimination for a nation still chasing its first World Cup title since 2002.
