Carlo Ancelotti has urged calm after Brazil’s stuttering World Cup opener, insisting Friday’s Group C fixture against Haiti in Philadelphia represents an opportunity to correct the shortcomings that surfaced in their 1-1 draw with Morocco.
The five-time champions required a moment of brilliance from Vinicius Jr to salvage a point in their opening match, after Ismael Saibari handed Morocco an early lead. Brazil now face Haiti, who began the tournament with a 1-0 defeat to Scotland and are widely considered among the weakest sides in the competition.
“You don’t win the World Cup in the first match,” Ancelotti told reporters in Philadelphia on Thursday. “The players’ self-criticism was very positive. I think we’ll sort out the problems. I remain confident that we’ll be competitive.”
The Italian, who took charge of Brazil a little over a year ago, indicated he would make targeted adjustments rather than sweeping changes to his starting line-up.
“We’re going to make a few changes — improve our balance and our play,” he said. “We can do better and we have to do better.”
Ancelotti acknowledged that the burden of expectation may have weighed on his players in the opening half against Morocco. “The first half was a bit unexpected. It may be that the pressure of wearing the shirt in the opening match affected the players’ mental state a little.”
He was nonetheless reluctant to draw broader conclusions from a single group-stage result. “I don’t think the opening matches will determine the final outcome of the World Cup. We have to give further opportunities to the players who didn’t perform well in the first half against Morocco. No one in our team played at their best.”
When pressed on whether Brazil lacked a clear tactical identity under his management, Ancelotti was unapologetic. “I don’t want a single identity,” he said. “I want my team to have multiple identities.”
