The Brazilian team beat Guinea (4-1) on Saturday and danced to their heart’s content in an anti-racism party in Cornellà that featured Vinicius Jr, who left the ‘perico’ stadium to an ovation after scoring a penalty goal in the final stretch added to goals from Joelinton, Rodrygo and Militao to close Barcelona’s summer concentration with a taste of Madrid. Today the cariocas will go to Lisbon to play against Senegal.
“With Racism I Have No Game”. You don’t play racism. This is the message that can be read on most of the banners that fill an RCDE Stadium (from this week at Stage Front) that has recently become a stage for protests. If a few days ago it was the blue and white fans who protested last year’s arbitration proceedings, this Saturday it was the Brazilian team’s turn to say ‘enough’ to racism in our football, choosing to mourn in a friendly against Guinea organized the CBF within his campaign.
Led by Vinicius, recognized by most of the fans who arrived in Cornellà, the ‘canarinha’ wore black in the first half for the first time in its history. Something unprecedented but imperative in the face of the many xenophobic attacks that continue to dominate sports news. The players knelt on the pitch after the initial whistle, and requested a minute of anti-racist silence over the public address system. Previously, several images passed through the video scoreboards reminding the comments that world-class players like Pogba or Roberto Carlos had to suffer. The plague of our society.
After the big demonstration there was time for joy and goals. And although it was not a glamorous match, the two teams were sharp in both areas. The Guineans, with Ilaix Moriba leading the engine room and Guirassy as the offensive reference, were more cautious and waited for Brazil in their own half. The ‘canarinha’ fielded his best-known eleven with Vinícius and Rodrygo at the ends and wanted to take the reins of the match and control possession in the first change.
Brazil went ahead before half time through Joelinton. Rodrygo kicked a free kick from the sideline and Militao stepped in to finish but collided with Koné, leaving the rebound for the Newcastle midfielder to open the can. A few minutes later, in the 30′ it was Rodrygo, who danced some attacks to Sylla on the right side. After hoping with great power, the Real Madrid striker easily got away from the Guinean winger and scored the second after a powerful shot that the African goalkeeper could not stop in any way.
Guinea did not shrink and wanted to respond quickly to Brazil’s attacks. He did so on 36′ when the impressive Serhou Guirassy rose to perfection against Ederson to finish a cross that cut the gap on the scoreboard. In the first minutes, the Africans experienced the fatigue of a week’s game against Egypt, but gradually they got used to a meeting with a lot of rhythm on both sides.
The second half did not lose color, with Brazil already wearing the ‘canarinha’ as a shirt. The new kit suited Ramon Menezes’ men, who improved quickly after the restart. Lucas Paquetá put a tense ball into the penalty spot where Militao was located to make it 3-1 to the favor in the minute 47′ with a great header that went into Koné’s goal with power.
From there, changes followed each other and Ederson emerged as the protagonist after two excellent saves from point blank range on Yadaly Diaby and Jose Kante, the latter born in Catalonia. Brazil managed to extend the gap, but Richarlison rested on his laurels with a counterattack where he was alone against the goalkeeper. The Tottenham player wanted to give the goal to Bruno Guimaraes, but in the end neither of them survived it for the benefit of goalkeeper Koné.
And of all that was sold, the last minutes went to Vinícius. With Guinea focusing on attack, the ‘canarinha’ took advantage of the open field to run and Malcom converted the penalty on his ‘canarinha’ debut. The Zenit winger was brought down by Sylla and the referee was clear about it. Penalty for Brazil. The ball was picked up by Vinícius, who listened as the fans cheered his name before finishing in style to make it 4-1 on 87′. After establishing himself in his goal, Ramon Menezes replaced the Real Madrid star to receive the final ovation of the night on the day he set foot in a stadium again as a visitor, even though Brazil were playing at home.
DATA SHEET
1 – Guinea: Ibrahim Kone; Antoine Conte (m.65 Dembo Sylla), Saidou Sow, Mouctar Diakhaby, Issiaga Sylla; Amadou Diawara, Ilaix Moriba (m.82 Aguibou Camara); Morgan Guilavogui (m.72 Morlaye Sylla), Naby Keïta (m.72 Cissé), Francois Kamano (m.72 Diaby); and Serhou Guirassy (m.64 Kanté).
Coach: Kaba Diawara.
Goals: 1-0, m.27: Joelinton; 2-0, m.30: Rodrygo; 2-1, m.36: Guirassy; 3-1, m.47: Militao; 4-1, m.88 Vinicius.
Referee: Andris Treimanis advised Paquetá, Casemiro and Issiaga Sylla.
Incidents: friendly match between senior teams Brazil and Guinea, played at Stage Front Stadium
Source: La Verdad
I’m Rose Herman and I work as an author for Today Times Live. My expertise lies in writing about sports, a passion of mine that has been with me since childhood. As part of my job, I provide comprehensive coverage on everything from football to tennis to golf.
