Paraguay pulled off a big upset in their Copa América quarterfinal against Brazil, winning on penalties after drawing 1-1 in normal time. The result means they go through to face Argentina in the next round, while Brazil face another painful period of recriminations a year on from their embarrassing World Cup exit.
3 things we learned from Paraguay’s shootout win over Brazil
Paraguay came from behind to beat Brazil on penalties on Sunday.
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The opening few minutes of the match were rather even. Brazil's Philippe Coutinho had a stinging long-range shot parried over the bar, though his side's defense looked worryingly exposed to Paraguay's pace on the counter-attack.
However, Los Guaraníes looked rather less impressive at the back, and they conceded a disappointing goal after just a quarter of an hour. A low cross from Dani Alves evaded all defenders in the box, and left striker Robinho with the simple task of slotting into the back of the net from close range.
The goal seemed to give Brazil a brief boost of confidence, though by halftime Paraguay were back on top. They managed to peg their opponents back inside their own half, though they didn’t have the penetration to match their control of possession.
Paraguay finally managed to give Brazil a scare 10 minutes after the restart, though Nelson Haedo Valdez headed narrowly over the crossbar on a corner. They went even closer on another set piece when Paulo Da Silva powered the ball towards goal just past the hour, though goalkeeper Jefferson got down to beat the ball to safety.
Time seemed to be running out for Paraguay to grab an equalizer. They continued to look on top, though Brazil clung to their narrow advantage.
That was until the final 20 minutes, when the referee correctly spotted an inexplicable Thiago Silva handball in the penalty area and awarded a spot-kick. Young Derlis González stepped up and made no mistake, smashing the ball into the back of net.
There remained time for them to almost snatch a winner before the shootout, but Jefferson got down to palm a González shot away at the end of a lightning break down the right. Brazil tried to muster a reaction to the late scare, though their late control of the game was sterile, despite Dunga’s attempts to change things up from the bench.
The upshot was that the game went to penalties, which Brazil opened with a goal when Fernandinho smashed a low shot under Justo Villar. Osvaldo Martínez responded with an equalizer for Paraguay, before Everton Ribeiro stroked his spot-kick way wide to give Los Guaraníes a chance to take the lead. Victor Cáceres duly obliged, lashing the ball straight down the middle.
Miranda kept Brazil's hopes alive when he scored an equalizing spot-kick, though a fine penalty from Raúl Bobadilla found the roof of the net and kept Paraguay ahead. Douglas Costa then granted them a chance of winning the game, when he ballooned his effort straight over the crossbar, though Paraguay captain Roque Santa Cruz put his shot even higher over the top.
Coutinho kept Brazil’s faint hopes alive by scoring their fifth penalty, but González netted his second spot-kick of the evening to send Paraguay through.
Brazil: Jefferson; Luís, Miranda, Silva, Alves; Fernandinho, Elías; Robinho (Ribeiro 87’), Coutinho, Willian (Costa 60’); Firmino (Tardelli 69’).
Goals: Robinho (15’).
Paraguay: Villar; Piris, Aguilar, Silva, Valdez; Benítez (Romero 84’), Aranda (Martínez 77’), Cáceres, González; Haedo Valdez (Bobadilla 74’), Santa Cruz.
Goals: González (pen. 72’).
3 Things
1. Brazil’s old problems still exist
Brazil's organizational problems at last summer's World Cup manifested themselves in a struggle to link their defense with their attack, and a subsequent difficulty in scoring when their star man Neymar wasn't on hand to produce individual moments of brilliance. One may have thought a national humiliation and the hiring of a new coach would have helped them shake things up, though this performance was the latest in a line of underwhelming displays at this tournament. Their football doesn't look much better than what they played under Luiz Felipe Scolari, and Dunga may well be too pragmatic a tactician to introduce a more innovative style.
2. Brazil struggled with Paraguay’s wide threat
With tricky wingers in Édgar Benítez and Derlis González, and a tall, physical striker in Roque Santa Cruz, it was likely that Paraguay would target the flanks in this match. That indeed proved to be the case, and Benítez’s battle against the notoriously attack-minded Brazil right-back Dani Alves proved to be an intriguing one throughout. Brazil’s full-backs were often caught too high up the field, leaving their center backs completely exposed and forced into charging out wide to neutralize attacking moves. Had Paraguay made a few better decisions in the final third, they could have put this game to bed much earlier.
3. Robinho marked his 100th(!) cap with a goal
On paper, Robinho is an impressive player. He's won titles in Brazil, Spain and Italy, and with this appearance entered a select club of players who've made a century of international appearances for the Seleção. But seemingly no one in history has ever achieved so much by doing so little. His goal in this match was his first at international level since the World Cup in South Africa five years ago, and it is slightly alarming that he's Dunga's preferred backup to Neymar.
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