- Switzerland lost to Brazil 1-0 in the World Cup match
- Brazil advances to the World Cup’s knockout rounds thanks to Casemiro
- The interior of this unusual stadium was brightly painted yellow with a canary frieze by tens of thousands of yellow shirts
DOHA: On Monday night, Brazilian fans brought Latin American swagger to this region of Qatar, as Casemiro’s lone goal against Switzerland propelled Brazil into the knockout rounds of the 2022 World Cup finals. Doha’s Stadium 974 vibrated to the rhythm of the samba.
The midfielder’s amazing 83rd-minute strike gave Brazil a victory with one game remaining and ignited a match that had previously struggled to get going.
But none of it will matter to the sea of Brazilian supporters, who forgot the previous 80 or so minutes of shoddy passing and aimless play in the hysteria of the final few seconds.
The interior of this unusual stadium was painted bright yellow by tens of thousands of yellow shirts, creating a frieze of canaries that was only somewhat broken up by a few local supporters wearing traditional white robes and a few red Swiss shirts.
It was difficult to imagine that this match was being played in the Arabian Peninsula because it had all the characteristics of a Brazilian home game, including thundering roars greeting each spectacular move and a steady beat played throughout.
The soccer student may have thought otherwise, though, if the supporters had arranged a celebration. Both of these teams’ previous World Cup games had resulted in draws: 2-2 in 1950 and 1-1 in 2018.
In their nine meetings with Switzerland, the Brazilians have only won three, drawn four, and lost two.
Before Casemiro’s moment of absolute wizardry, this Monday night match appeared to be headed for another draw.
In an act of increasing desperation, Casemiro, who had come on at halftime, delivered a first-time ball to Rodrygo. Casemiro struck it with the outside of his foot and it slipped past Yann Sommer in goal, shocking the Swiss as it bulged the side of the inside of his goal.
Casemiro and Brazil owe a big debt of gratitude to Vinicius Jr. for the goal, even if Rodrygo delivered the assist. Brazil’s newest superstar had pulled three increasingly desperate defenders onto him, which opened up space for the goal.
The match could have finished 2-0 or 3-0, but it would have been unfair to the Europeans who, for the most part, dulled their opponents after being stunned by a brutal moment of Brazilian brilliance.
The Swiss, though, can be encouraged by their performance and will advance with Brazil if they defeat Serbia in their last group game. A draw might possibly be sufficient.
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