5:1！ The return of the king of Neymar: a god-level dragon, surpassing the king of the ball to create history, becoming the first in the history of the team
Neymar overtook Pele as Brazil beat Bolivia 5-1
On September 7, 2023, Brazil took on Bolivia's challenge at the Musquembi Stadium in São Paulo in the first round of the South American World Cup qualifiers. It was the first official match for the Brazilian national team after the World Cup in Qatar and the debut of interim head coach Dinis. Brazil showed great strength in the match, winning easily 5-1 to open the game.
Match Review
As soon as the match started, Brazil took the initiative and constantly created threats. In the 15th minute, Rodrigo was pulled down by an opposing defender in the box and the referee awarded a penalty. Neymar took the penalty but it was saved by the Bolivian goalkeeper. However, this did not affect Neymar's confidence, and he shocked the audience with a god-level solo performance in the 22nd minute. He broke through four Bolivian players with the ball from the left flank and then scored with a left-footed volley in front of the small penalty area to open the door to victory for Brazil.
In the 32nd minute, Rodrigo received a cross from Neymar and nodded his header to make it 2-0. Bolivia pulled a goal back with a counter-attacking opportunity before the end of the first half, but it didn't cause much trouble for Brazil.
After the start of the second half, Brazil continued to control the situation. In the 51st minute, Rafinha received a direct ball from Neymar on the right side of the box and pushed it into the net when the opposing goalkeeper came out, extending the score to 3-1. Just six minutes later, Rodrigo scored another feat when he received a pass from Neymar on the left side of the box and scored with a right-footed volley to seal Brazil's victory.
In the 64th minute, Neymar was once again in the spotlight. After receiving a pass from Rafinha outside the box, he curled the ball with his right foot, which flew into the corner and scored the fifth goal for Brazil. It was also Neymar's 79th goal for the national team, surpassing Pele (77 goals) to become the most goals scored in the history of the Brazilian national team.
Neither side has changed the score since then. In the end, Brazil beat Bolivia 5-1 to open the South American World Qualifiers.
Match analysis
This match can be said to be a rebirth of the Brazilian national team after the World Cup in Qatar. In the World Cup in Qatar, Brazil suffered a crushing defeat (0-3) by Croatia in the quarterfinals (0-3) and missed the semi-finals. The defeat also led to the dismissal of head coach Tite, who led the team to win the 2019 Copa America during his five years in charge of Brazil, but did not achieve satisfactory results at the World Cup.
After Tite left, the Brazilian Football Federation appointed Dinis as interim head coach, who was an assistant coach of the Brazilian national team and a close friend of Brazilian legend Ronaldo. After taking over, Dinis made some changes to the lineup and tactics, he adopted a 4-3-3 formation, with Neymar, Rodrigo and Rafinha forming a trident at front, Casemiro, Artur and Coutinho in the midfield, Danilo, Marquinhos, Miranda and Sandro in the back, and Alisson in the goal.
Such a line-up and tactics allowed Brazil to show strong attacking power and control in the game, with 70% possession and 23 shots on goal, including 11 on target. Bolivia, on the other hand, had only four shots on goal, two of which were on target. The heart of Brazil's attack is Neymar, who contributed two goals and three assists in the game, showing excellent breakthrough and shooting skills. Not only did he help the team to victory, but he also set a personal all-time record, surpassing Pele to become the player with the most goals in the history of the Brazilian national team.
Neymar made 124 appearances and scored 79 goals for the national team, making him the top scorer for the Brazilian national team. He is also one of the most influential stars in world football today, having played for big clubs such as Santos, Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain, winning several titles at club level. He hopes to lead Brazil to a sixth Hercules Cup in a future World Cup.
Fan views
The match attracted a lot of attention and discussion, and many fans expressed their opinions on social media. Here are excerpts from some fan opinions:
"Neymar is the greatest! He surpassed Bailey, which is an incredible achievement! I'm so proud of him! ”
"The Brazilian team is so strong! They completely suppressed Bolivia in the game and showed the demeanor of the South American hegemon! I'm sure they will win the World Cup! ”
"The Bolivian team is pathetic! They simply don't stand a chance! They should thank the Brazilian team for not playing harder! ”
"Dinis is a good coach! He gave Brazil back confidence and form! He should continue to coach! ”
"I don't think Tite should have been fired! He led Brazil to win the Copa America and only lost to Croatia in the World Cup!
