Brazil turned to Carlo Ancelotti hoping the Italian coaching great could end their long wait to win another World Cup, but his mission ended in a painful defeat to Norway on Sunday as the Selecao’s woes at the tournament went on.
Two Erling Haaland goals decided the last-16 clash at the MetLife Stadium in Norway’s favour after Bruno Guimaraes had an early penalty saved.
Neymar’s successful late spot-kick was just a consolation, as the once mighty Brazilians — who had just 34 percent possession — slumped to their earliest World Cup exit since 1990.
The ex-Real Madrid and AC Milan coach was appointed in May last year and recently signed a contract extension to stay until 2030.
He may have been realistic enough to know winning this year’s World Cup was a big ask, but going out so soon is an enormous disappointment.
Despite that, he insisted he would stay.
“A defeat is the start of a new adventure. Now we need to keep working hard and keep improving,” he said.
“This is football. This is sport. You just have to deal with it. We will use this as fuel going forward.”
The Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) had been courting Ancelotti for two years before getting their man.
The Selecao were in a dire state after their quarter-final exit on penalties to Croatia at the 2022 World Cup.
Coach Tite departed, and Fernando Diniz took over for the start of qualifying for this World Cup, but lasted just six games.
In came Dorival Junior, but the veteran oversaw a quarter-final exit at the 2024 Copa America before being dismissed in March last year.
Ancelotti saw Brazil over the line, although they finished fifth in the 10-team South American qualifying group, 10 points behind first-placed Argentina.
The hope, expectation even, was that they would still compete strongly here.
Instead they continued a now long-standing trend — since last winning the World Cup in 2002, they have lost every time they have faced European opposition in the knockout stages.
At the last five World Cups before this, Brazil lost four times in the quarter-finals and reached the semis once — when they suffered a traumatising 7-1 defeat to Germany as hosts in 2014.
Endrick to step up?
Sunday’s defeat suggests they are going backwards, despite the leadership shown at this year’s tournament by Vinicius Junior, the Real Madrid forward who turns 26 next week.
“Being knocked out of a World Cup is always a huge blow,” he said. “But now we have to move on, there’s not much we can do.”
That means eventually turning their attention towards the next Copa America in 2028, before they can build to the 2030 World Cup.
By the time that comes around, the nation of the great Pele will have gone 28 years without lifting the trophy.
Ancelotti has had an incredible managerial career at club level in Europe, winning the Champions League five times. But his relationship with the World Cup has been less happy.
As a player, he missed Italy’s victorious 1982 World Cup campaign through injury. He played in 1990, when Italy hosted but lost in the semi-finals to Argentina.
Then came 1994 and the shootout loss to Brazil in the final in the USA, with a 35-year-old Ancelotti serving as Arrigo Sacchi’s assistant.
This time he insisted his team had given a good account of themselves, as they eased through the group stage and fought back to beat Japan in the last 32.
“I don’t think we have had a spectacular World Cup but we had a good one,” he said.
His decision to include Neymar was a gamble, with the 34-year-old not having played for his country since 2023 because of injuries.
It didn’t pay off — he made only two substitute appearances and announced his international retirement after the Norway loss.
This was an ageing squad, with 10 players in their thirties. “We need fresh talent, top-class players who can play in the national team of the future,” added Ancelotti.
Endrick, the 19-year-old Real Madrid starlet, could lead the next generation.
“The history of the Brazilian national team has been marked by great achievements, but also by moments that have strengthened us going forward,” said a CBF statement.
“Today we say goodbye to the World Cup, but we do sure that we will come back stronger.”
