Brazil vs Bolivia
South America – 2018 World Cup Qualifier
Date: Friday; 7th October 2016,
Kick-off at 1:45 UK
Venue: Arena das Dunas, Natal.
September results pushed Brazil from 6th in the CONMEBOL table to 2nd, but the pressure is on to consolidate and the weight of expectation is significant. Tite could not have asked for a better start to life as the Seleção supremo than a consummate win at altitude in Quito and a dominant victory over Colombia in Manaus. But Bolivia and Venezuela will deliver different pressures as Tite seeks to extend his honeymoon period.
Brazil are only 3 points clear of Paraguay in 6th place and level on points with Argentina in 3rd- a victory against Bolivia in Natal is crucial. The manager will be forced to make at least cosmetic changes to his midfield with Casemiro injured and Paulinho suspended. Manchester City’s Fernandinho has been recalled into the squad and he will probably take Casemiro’s place at the base of midfield.
It looks as though Zenit St. Petersburg’s Guiliano will take Paulinho’s spot, completing a midfield trio with Renato Augusto. Tite’s midfield trios tend not to operate with clearly defined number 6, number 8 and number 10 roles like most modern midfields. Tite likes his creative playmakers to drift in from wide positions and for this reason, it looks as though Philippe Coutinho will start on the right in place of Willian.
Coutinho replaced Willian from the bench in both September qualifiers and made a good impact on both occasions. The Chelsea man was the Seleção’s most consistent performer in 2015, but Tite’s system does not suit his qualities quite as well. Renato Augusto will probably be asked to shuffle over and fill the space Coutinho vacates as he drifts inside. Fernandinho and Renato Augusto will form a fairly lopsided double pivot. Whilst Guiliano will be asked to choose his moments to attack. That said, Bolivia are hardly likely to provide the most adventurous opposition.
Thiago Silva is back in the squad, but unlikely to make the starting line up. Tite has emphasised the importance of meritocracy and having performed so well in September, he probably won’t break up the partnership of João Miranda and Marquinhos just yet. Upfront, Gabriel Jesús will continue to be Brazil’s reference point, but in possession, it is likely that he and Neymar will have the freedom to interchange between the left hand side and the number 9 role.
Jesús announced himself on the international scene with a pair of stunning goals in Quito in September, but just lately the Manchester City bound striker has been showing signs of fatigue with league leaders Palmeiras. He played in a topsy turvy 3-2 win for the Verdão over Santa Cruz on Sunday night and will only have one training session with the team before the match against Bolivia. But Tite is hardly over run with options for the centre forward role and the partnership between Jesús and Neymar has shown early signs of promise.
The decision for Brazil to play in Natal is significant. The CBF have deliberately played most of the home qualifiers in the north of the country, where the support tends to be a little warmer and slightly more patient than it is further south. Brazil were mercilessly heckled in pre Copa América 2015 friendlies in São Paulo and Porto Alegre. All 31,000 tickets have been sold in the Arena das Dunas. The mood of Brazil fans has been lifted by the removal of Dunga and two excellent victories in September, but it will soon turn sour again if Bolivia surprise their hosts here. La Verde did earn a creditable 0-0 draw in Santiago in their last fixture; they will try to repeat that scoreline in Natal.
PREDICTED LINE UP; 1.ALISSON (Roma), 2.DANI ALVES (Juventus), 3.MIRANDA (Inter Milan), 13.MARQUINHOS (Paris Saint Germain), 6.FILIPE LUIS (Atletico Madrid), 5.FERNANDINHO (Manchester City), 8.R.AUGUSTO (Beijing Guoan), 18.GUILIANO (Zenit St. Petersburg), 11.P.COUTINHO (Liverpool), 10.NEYMAR (Barcelona), 9.G.JESUS (Palmeiras).
Brazil vs Bolivia: Head to Head Statistics
Brazil have dominated the previous games against Bolivia, they have won 6 games and lost 2 to Bolivia.
At home, Brazil have never lost a game against Bolivia, they have won 4 and drawn 5.
Brazil have conceded 8 goals against Bolivia, 1 at home, 7 on away soil. They have scored 28 goals against Bolivia, 18 at home and 10 away.
The last game between the 2 teams was 4-0 win for Brazil in an international Friendly game in 2013.
Brazil vs Bolivia: Prediction
Brazil are huge favourites in this game considering the qualities in their squad. They have lost just a game in this qualification campaign, they have won 4 and drawn 3. They are second in the table with 15 points, just a point below the leaders Uruguay. Furthermore, they are unbeaten in their last 5 qualification game with 3 wins and 2 draws.
Bolivia on the other hand are the under dogs in this game, they are currently 8th in the table with 7 points. They have already lost 5 games in this campaign and won just 2. The good thing is they are unbeaten in their last 2 qualification games with a win and draw. They will hope to get at least a draw in the game to continue their unbeaten form.
The Selecao could be backed to come out with a comfortable win from this World Cup qualifying fixture.
Brazil vs Bolivia: Betting Tips
Half-Time/Full-Time: Brazil/Brazil at 2.00 (1/1).
