Copa America 2019 Final: Brazil vs Peru – 5 Talking Points and Tactical Analysis

#1 Brazil bury quite a few ghosts at the Maracana

Brazil put to bed a few ghosts of their past

As soon as Brazil scraped past Paraguay in the quarter-final, all eyes turned to the Selecao’s upcoming potential encounters. A semi-final at Belo Horizonte and a potential final date at the Maracana beckoned. Incidentally, though, the venues represented the site of two of Brazil’s greatest footballing tragedies: The Maracanazo in 1950 and then the infamous 7-1 thrashing against Germany in 2014.

Hence, many were of the opinion that if Brazil were to get past both hurdles in the Copa America in 2019, they might be able to put to bed the nightmarish experiences of those evenings, to an extent. While it would be slightly optimistic to believe that a continental triumph might avenge the global humiliations of the yesteryears, it was certainly a good place for the Brazilians to start treading on the road to redemption.

On the 2nd of July, the hosts raced past Argentina and that set up a tricky encounter with Peru in the final. However, the Selecao ensured that they faced no major hiccups en route their 9th Copa America title.

During the final, there were moments when the Peruvian side was in the ascendancy. Yet, the home side held their nerve, waited for their chances and then capitalized on them. Hence, highlighting that while the current Brazilian team may not be as high on the flair quotient, it definitely is as efficient as any outfit the nation has seen this decade.

Despite the triumph, the future of their manager, Tite is still up in the air. There have been murmurs that he might be leaving his post yet that might still change, considering he has already started to right a few wrongs.

After all, the ghosts of one’s past can’t be erased in a trice. But, winning the Copa America, just a year after being panned at the World Cup, isn’t too bad a start, is it?