In the quarter-finals of the Copa America, Brazil had to bid farewell after losing in a tiebreaker. The match ended in a goalless draw in regular time and went straight to a tiebreaker.
It was there that Brazil’s dream was shattered. They had to exit with a 4-2 defeat. Uruguay had been reduced to 10 men towards the end. Dorival Junior’s disciples could not capitalize on that opportunity.
Fede Valverde took the first tiebreaker shot. He didn’t make a mistake. Alisson Becker dived to the left, but couldn’t reach the ball. Brazil missed their first shot, with Uruguay goalkeeper Sergio Rochet saving Eder Militao’s shot. Uruguay succeeded in their second shot as well. Andres Pereira kept Brazil’s hopes alive by scoring their second shot.
Uruguay scored on their third shot, while Brazil missed again, pushing the five-time world champions closer to elimination. However, Alisson saved Uruguay’s fourth shot, keeping Brazil’s hopes alive. Gabriel Martinelli didn’t disappoint. But Uruguay sealed the match with their fifth shot. Brazil exited from the quarter-finals.
Due to card complications, Brazil’s star player Vinicius Junior was out of the match. He was replaced by 17-year-old young striker Endrick Felipe. Brazil fans were eagerly waiting to see his role in the big match, but he couldn’t make a significant impact on the field.
On one hand, Uruguay was in top form, while Brazil was searching for their best form. However, both teams’ performances on the field were lackluster. They equally missed goal opportunities. In the 10th minute, Darwin Nunez had the chance to take the lead for Uruguay but failed to connect properly with his head.
Brazil also missed a big chance in the 28th minute. Raphinha could have received Endrick’s ball inside the box, but the Selecao winger couldn’t reach the ball. Uruguay cleared the danger and launched a counter-attack shortly after. Again, Nunez was in the spotlight, but his header went over the goalpost. Towards the end of the first half, both Brazil and Uruguay came close to scoring but couldn’t find the back of the net. Despite continuous attacks and counter-attacks, neither team managed to score before the break.
After a goalless first half, both teams became desperate for goals in the second half. Uruguay was seen using more physical power compared to the first half. Uruguay’s defender received a red card for a bad foul on Brazilian forward Rodrigo. In the 72nd minute, Rodrigo was attacking with the ball in Uruguay’s half. At that moment, Nahitan Nandez came from behind and tackled Rodrigo’s leg. He was initially shown a yellow card, but after a VAR review, the referee decided to show a red card. As a result, Uruguay was reduced to 10 men.
Uruguay had more attacks at the beginning of the second half. In the 53rd minute, they made two goal attempts. The first one was blocked by Brazilian defenders. The second one went wide of the goalpost. In the 68th minute, Uruguay’s defense blocked a Brazilian forward Lucas Paqueta’s attack. When Uruguay was down to 10 men, Brazil increased the intensity of their attacks. Towards the end of the match, Brazil continued their attacking streak, but they couldn’t find the net within the regular time.
