Uruguay 0-0 Brazil: Player ratings as Brazil’s lackluster attack fails to deliver in Copa America quarter-finals

Uruguay defeated Brazil on penalties at the 2024 Copa America, sending the world’s fourth-ranked team home in the quarterfinals.

Brazil had a disappointing group stage at the 2024 Copa America, managing just one win and settling for second place in Group D behind Colombia. While James Rodriguez and Co. were allowed to face Panama in the quarter-finals, the Selecao will have to face Group C winners Uruguay without Vinicius Jr., who is suspended for a yellow card.

This is how the game went

Brazil were on the defensive from the start of the match. Uruguay had possession for most of the first 25 minutes, pinning the Selecao in their own half. Marcelo Bielsa’s side had a number of good chances, including two dangerous headers from Darwin Nunez, but despite all their dominance they failed to get a single shot on target.

Endrick and Raphinha slowly got Brazil back into the game, using their speed on counterattacks to create Brazil’s first chances of the game, but in the final third neither of them lacked the quality to really test Sergio Rochet. Hard fouls quickly became the theme for the rest of the half and prevented any flow in the final 15 minutes. Both sides headed to the tunnel with the scores tied 0-0.

Unfortunately, the second half was marked by further poor touches and tough tackles from both sides, resulting in continued suspended play. Tensions reached a boiling point when Nahitan Nandez committed a dangerous foul on Rodrygo, making direct contact with the winger’s ankle with his studs up. The Uruguayan would have originally received a yellow card, but after a VAR review he was sent off in the 75th minute.

Despite having a man more, the Selecao were unable to create any significant chances in the final 15 minutes of the match. The match ended with 41 fouls before it inevitably went to penalties. Eder Militao and Douglas Luiz missed penalties for Brazil. Although Andreas Pereira and Gabriel Martinelli took their chances and Alisson saved a shot, it was not enough to beat Uruguay.

La Celeste advanced to the semi-finals with a 4-2 win on penalties, sending Brazil home.

Brazil player ratings (4-3-3)

Goalkeeper: Alisson – 6/10 – Alisson kept a clean sheet against a team that scored nine goals in their three group matches. The Liverpool goalkeeper saved a penalty in the shootout, but it was not enough to put Brazil through to the semi-finals.

RB: Danilo – 5/10 – For the second consecutive game, Danilo failed to influence the Brazilian attack, leaving Militao unprotected when trying to push forward and forcing the Real Madrid player to defend wide in one-on-one situations.

Centre-back: Marquinhos – 6/10 – Marquinhos did a good job alongside Militao to prevent Brazil from keeping a third clean sheet in the tournament.

Centre-back: Eder Militao – 6/10 – Militao was the best defender on the pitch tonight. Whether it was making last-minute tackles or blocking Darwin Nunez, the Real Madrid player was instrumental in preventing Uruguay from scoring. He was also good at deputising for Danilo when the right-back was out of position. Militao missed a penalty for Brazil.

LB: Guilherme Arana – 5/10 – Arana was a surprise in Dorival Junior’s starting lineup. He was solid defensively but had no notable moments.

CM: Joao Gomes – 5/10 – Gomes struggled to keep up with the pace of the Uruguayan midfield and the Brazilian resorted to bad fouls to stop La Celeste.

CM: Bruno Guimaraes – 5/10 – Bruno failed to get the ball and slow down the tempo of the game, but was combative in midfield and received little help from the players around him.

CM: Lucas Paqueta – 5/10 – After being substituted at half-time against Colombia, Paqueta was unable to get back into his stride tonight. The midfielder was virtually invisible and had no impact on the game in any way.

RW: Raphinha – 6/10 – Raphinha had Brazil’s best chances in the first half, but the Barcelona player lacked the necessary assertiveness. However, he was solid in defence and helped his team when they did not have the ball.

ST: Endrick – 6/10 – Endrick’s pace adds a new dimension to the Brazilian attack, but his small frame let him down tonight as the striker struggled to cope with the physicality of the game. Ultimately, the future Real Madrid player should have been more selfish in the final third.

Left-back: Rodrygo – 6/10 – Rodrygo had a quiet first half, but the winger came into the game and had much more possession in the second half, battling with Nahitan Nandez, using his dribbling skills and eventually forcing the defender into a red card offence.

Substitute

SUBSTITUTION: Savio – 5/10 – Savio looked lively in attack, but the substitute was unable to make a breakthrough for Brazil.

SUBSTITUTION: Douglas Luiz – 4/10 – Douglas Luiz came on with fresh legs and put Uruguay under pressure in the final minutes of the game, missing a penalty in the shootout.

SUBSTITUTION: Andreas Pereira – 5/10 – Pereira came on in the 82nd minute and almost immediately committed a bad foul that gave Uruguay a dangerous free kick and subsequent corner. The substitute converted a crucial penalty after Militao’s miss.

REPLACEMENT: Gabriel Martinelli – N/A – Martinelli came to the penalty shootout and did his best.

Replacement: Evanilson – N/A – Evanilson came on as a substitute in the 87th minute.

Manager

Dorival Junior – 6/10 – Brazil travelled to the USA this summer as one of the favourites to win the 2024 Copa America, but failed to make an impression in three of their four matches. Dorival Junior continues to start the same midfield, which lacks vision, creativity and control, and relies too heavily on his wingers to get past defenders in one-on-one situations and create scoring opportunities.

Exiting in the quarter-finals of the Copa America as the fourth-ranked team in the world is a disappointing result for the Selecao, and Dorival Junior must answer for his team’s poor tournament performance.