Joe Wright
Brazil spurned the chance to move second in the CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying standings after being held to a 1-1 draw by Venezuela on Thursday.
Vinicius Junior missed a second-half penalty after a brilliant Telasco Segovia strike had cancelled out a superb Raphinha free-kick.
Alexander Gonzalez was sent off in the 89th minute after catching Vinicius with a raised hand, but despite nine minutes of added time, Dorival Junior’s team never realistically looked like escaping a raucous Estadio Monumental de Maturin with three points.
It means Brazil are third in the standings ahead of the remainder of Thursday and Friday matches, although Uruguay will overtake them if they can defeat second-place Colombia.
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Starting lineups:
Venezuela (4-2-3-1, right to left): 22. Rafael Romo (GK) — 4. Jon Aramburu, 3. Wilker Angel, 14. Ruben Ramirez, 15. Miguel Navarro — 6. Yangel Herrera, 13. Jose Martinez — 20. Eduard Bello, 7. Jefferson Savarino, 16. Jhon Murillo — 23. Salomon Rondon
Brazil (4-2-3-1, right to left): 23. Ederson (GK) — 13. Vanderson, 4. Marquinhos, 14. Gabriel Magalhaes, 16. Abner — 15. Gerson, 5. Bruno Guimaraes — 20. Savinho, 10. Raphinha, 7. Vinicius Junior — 9. Igor Jesus
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Three wins from four games prior to the November international break had put the Selecao back into a good position in terms of qualification for the 2026 tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico, but this setback underlined the reality that they look a long way from being considered realistic contenders for the trophy.
Raphinha’s sumptuous free-kick late in the first half had them on course for victory, but Venezuela levelled within a minute of the second half starting, Segovia blasting home from the edge of the box at the end of a swift passing move.
Chances were scarce in a frenetic game watched by a boisterous capacity crowd, but when Vinicius was felled in the box by goalkeeper Rafael Romo, it seemed as though Brazil would regain their lead. However, the Real Madrid star’s spot-kick was comfortably saved, and he mishit the rebound horribly to send a bouncing ball wide.
VINICIUS JR. WINS THE PENALTY BUT MISSES IT 😮
BRAZIL REMAINS TIED WITH VENEZUELA! pic.twitter.com/wxNVBhUVuL
An engrossing end to the contest saw Gonzalez sent off after raising his hand to the face of Vinicius, who had run up behind him to grab the ball for a free-kick. In stoppage time, a member of Brazil’s backroom staff was also shown a red card following a touchline fracas that began when the on-pitch sprinklers were activated while the game was still ongoing.
Venezuela held on through the extended added time to claim a deserved point that keeps their hopes of qualifying for the World Cup on track. Brazil’s fate is also in their own hands, but with their next three games coming against the other three teams in the CONMEBOL standings’ top four, this is not a result they will be celebrating.
Brazil sit fourth after 11 matches, five adrift of leaders Argentina. Venezuela are seventh but only a point outside the top five.
This was the 31st meeting of these teams. Unsurprisingly, Brazil boast the superior record, with 24 wins and just two losses from those matches.
The most notable absence for La Vinotinto is starting defender Yordan Osorio, who has been missing for Italian side Parma since picking up a back injury in the previous international break.
They are also without backup goalkeeper Joel Graterol, who tore his patellar tendon in early October while playing for his club, Colombian giants America de Cali.
Venezuela have seemingly moved on from experienced veterans Josef Martinez and Roberto Rosales, as neither has received a call-up since being left off the Copa America roster.
Venezuela starting lineup (4-2-3-1, right to left): Romo (GK) — Aramburu, Angel, Ramirez, Navarro — Herrera, Martinez — Bello, Savarino, Murillo — Rondon
Venezuela subs: Farinez, Ferraresi, Makoun, Rincon, Cadiz, Segovia, Machis, Baroja, Andrade, Casseres Jr.
Injured: Osorio (back), Graterol (knee).
Suspended: None.
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Brazil coach Dorival confirmed his team at his pre-match press conference: Vinicius Junior will start in place of Rodrygo in the sole change from the 4-0 win over Peru in October.
In addition to the continued absence of Neymar, who continues to find himself on the injured list, the most notable names missing for Brazil are Rodrygo and Real Madrid teammate Eder Militao, who both picked up serious injuries in their recent win over Osasuna last weekend. Rodrygo picked up a thigh problem and will be sidelined over a month, while Militao has re-torn his ACL which will leave the defender sidelined for a lengthy spell.
Militao joins his fellow Brazil defender Bremer and Flamengo striker Pedro on the long-term shelf, with both having suffered the same knee injury in recent months.
Also out injured is goalkeeper Alisson, who remains absent from Liverpool action with a hamstring tear, while Yan Couto was not called in having only just returned to action for Borussia Dortmund after a month-long muscle injury.
Brazil starting lineup (4-2-3-1, right to left): Ederson (GK) — Vanderson, Marquinhos, Gabriel, Abner — Gerson, Guimaraes — Savinho, Raphinha, Vinicius — Jesus
Brazil subs: Weverton, Danilo, Ortiz, Arana, Paqueta, Martinelli, Bento, Murillo, Andre, Pereira, Luiz Henrique, Estevao
Injured: Rodrygo (thigh), Militao (ACL), Neymar (hamstring), Alisson (hamstring), Bremer (ACL), Pedro (ACL), Couto (fitness).
Suspended: None.
This FIFA World Cup qualifying clash takes place at Estadio Monumental de Maturin in Maturin, Venezuela and kicks off at 5:00 p.m. local time.
Here’s how that kickoff time translates across some of the major global territories:
Joe Wright is a Senior Editor at Sporting News, managing global soccer and the UK team. He was previously a sub editor and writer for Goal.com before spending six years as part of the Stats Perform editorial news service, covering major global sports including football, tennis, boxing, NBA, rugby union and athletics. Joe has extensive experience covering some of the biggest events in football, including two UEFA Champions League finals, Euro 2016, the Confederations Cup 2017 and the 2018 World Cup, which included the final in Moscow.
