Compared to the opening match against Bolivia, Brazil only had 1 change in the starting lineup, which was the return of Arthur to the center of midfield (replacing Fernandinho). On the attack line, Coach Tite still believes in the trio of Neres - Richarlison - Firmino. The stone in the middle blocker position is Philippe Coutinho.
With superior class and the support of home fans, Brazil quickly created a pressuring attacking game, forcing Venezuela to retreat deep to play defense. The first significant opportunity was created by Brazil in the 15th minute with a powerful left-footed shot by David Neres. Unfortunately, in this situation, the Ajax player sent the ball wide of the Venezuelan goal.
In general, Venezuela created a very tight defensive situation, minimizing the space for Brazil to show speed and technique in the coordination phases. Not only that, Venezuela also often created dangerous counter-attacks.
In the 19th minute, Venezuela almost opened the scoring after Salomon Rondon headed the ball. Goalkeeper Alisson was in a dead end but the ball went wide of the post.
With the pressure created, Brazil broke through the Venezuela net in the 38th minute after Roberto Firmino's shot-turning. However, the referee dismissed Brazil's goal because he thought the Liverpool star had foulled the Venezuelan defender before taking a shot.
At the end of the first half with a score of 0-0, Coach Tite was forced to increase the attack personnel with the contribution of Gabriel Jesus at the beginning of the second half. Like the first half, the Samba dancers still completely dominated the game with an overwhelming ball possession rate.
However, against Venezuela's tight defense, Selecao did not have much space to make a difference. Shortly after entering the field, Gabriel Jesus sent a fishing net through Venezuela.
Gabriel Jesus carefully looked at the referee and celebrated, but immediately after that, VAR intervened and took away this goal. Roberto Firmino was offside before making an assist to his 1997 teammate.
Despite being denied a goal twice, Brazil still patiently deployed an attacking style of play. Selecao's attack was supplemented by young talent Everton at the end of the match. This is also the time when Venezuela's goal is in a state of alarm.
On the bench, Everton made a breakthrough in the 87th minute with a breakthrough and a pass for Coutinho to finish into the Venezuela net. However, fans at Fonte Nova Stadium had another missed celebration when VAR determined that Firmino had let the ball touch his hand when participating in an attack that led to a goal.
The 9-minute extra time was not enough to help the home team find a goal against the opponent. The match ended in a 0-0 draw. Venezuela, with their disciplined play and a bit of luck, won a valuable point against championship candidate Brazil. Thus, after 2 matches, Selecao has 4 points, equal to Peru. They still have to wait until the final match (against Peru) to decide the ticket to continue.
