World Cup 2026: Diniz debuts in the selection in a game for the qualifiers against Bolivia

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The game takes place at the Mangueirão stadium in Belém.

This Friday (8), Brazil opens its participation in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers against Bolivia, at the Mangueirão stadium, in Belém, at 9:45 pm (Brasília time). The beginning of the journey is also Fernando Diniz’s first appointment as interim coach of the national team since he was announced for the position in July. Brazil’s debut will be broadcast live on Rádio Nacional. The day will open at 9:30 pm, with narration by André Luiz Mendes, comments by Waldir Luiz and reporting by Bruno Mendes.

The 23 called up by the Fluminense commander began reporting for training in Belém last Monday (4). The last to arrive was striker Gabriel Jesus, from Arsenal, called up following the recall of Antony, from Manchester United, who was being investigated for attacks on his ex-girlfriend Gabriela Cavallin.

The expectation is that Diniz will take the following formation to the field: Ederson, Danilo, Marquinhos, Gabriel Magalhães and Renan Lodi; Casemiro, Bruno Guimarães, Neymar and Rodrygo; Raphinha and Richarlison.

Outside of the first lists after the 2022 World Cup, made by Ramon Menezes, Neymar, now playing for Al-Hilal, in Saudi Arabia, has the chance to make history at Mangueirão. If he scores, he will reach 78 goals for Brazil, surpassing Pelé and becoming the greatest scorer in the history of the national team, according to FIFA’s accounts. It is worth remembering that, for the CBF, which counts other goals in friendly matches, Pelé scored 95 goals with the green and yellow shirt.

It is already known that Neymar, like Pelé, will wear 10 this Friday (8). The CBF released the numbering for the team’s next two games in the Qualifiers.

Another point of interest is to see how Diniz’s style will be put into practice in the national team. Hired to act as a bridge to the next coach who should take over from 2024 – the name of the Italian Carlo Ancelotti, from Real Madrid is speculated – Diniz, who has one year left on his contract, is known for being adept at maintaining possession of ball from the defense field and out of concern for the aesthetic side of the game, thinking about playing flashy football. Nine athletes from the current group have already been trained by him at some point in their career. Others are still being introduced to the coach’s concepts, such as midfielder Casemiro, who captained the team in recent games.

“We know that each coach has his philosophy, his qualities, his way of playing. Fernando Diniz is showing us videos, he is telling us how he likes to see the team play. We already have a base that came from the World Cup. This adaptation won’t be a problem”, believes Casemiro.

After Bolivia, Brazil will face Peru, in Lima, next Tuesday (12), at 11pm Brasília. With the number of participants increasing to 48 teams in the next World Cup, the South American Qualifiers now provide six direct places and the possibility of one more in the repechage.

As usual, there are ten countries in the dispute (Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela) that face each other in turn and return, totaling 18 matches for each team. The last round is scheduled to take place on September 9, 2025. The first six rounds will be played in 2023.

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