Bruno Guimaraes has cemented his place as a certain starter for Brazil at the World Cup after a brilliant goal and man-of-the-match performance against Egypt. The Newcastle United captain opened the scoring in a 2-1 warm-up victory in Cleveland, Ohio, last night.
Guimaraes Shines in Midfield
Lining up alongside Casemiro in central midfield, Guimaraes needed just seven minutes to make his mark. He dispossessed Egypt's Mohanad Lasheen just outside the box, advanced, and curled a delightful right-footed shot past goalkeeper Mostafa Shobeir.
Brazil's lead was short-lived as Egypt equalized through Mostafa Zico after a mistake by PSG defender Marquinhos. However, the Samba stars continued to create chances through Vinicius Junior and Barcelona striker Raphinha. The winning goal came from 19-year-old forward Endrick in the second half, after head coach Carlo Ancelotti made extensive changes, including replacing Guimaraes at half-time.
Guimaraes Calls for Mentality
After the match, Guimaraes took to Instagram to express his delight. He wrote: "Victory, goal and great performance by the entire team! This is the mentality we need to carry from now on! Saturday it begins. Let's go BRAZIL. God is faithful!"
Ancelotti Confident in Lineup
Ancelotti revealed he already has his starting lineup in mind for Brazil's World Cup opener against Morocco on June 13. "I have the starting lineup for the game against Morocco, my idea is clear," the veteran manager said. "The Vini and Raphinha duo worked very well. I think both of them had a very good game. I'm even more certain. The team was very good defensively for 60 minutes. Offensively we played well, we respected the game plan."
Brazil are in Group C and will also face Scotland and Haiti in the first round after their opener against Morocco.
