"We played very badly" - Real Madrid star Vinicius Jr gives honest assessment on Brazil's humbling 4-1 defeat against Argentina

Vinicius Jr did not hold back in his assessment of Brazil’s performance in their recent defeat to Argentina in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. The winger slammed his side and commended La Albiceleste for their ruthless performance in front of home fans.

The FIFA World Cup qualifying match between Argentina and Brazil in Buenos Aires on Tuesday (March 25) was expected to be an evenly matched affair. However, the result was far from that as the five-time World Cup winners were walloped 4-1 by their South American rivals.

Argentina bested Brazil in all attacking statistics in the match. Lionel Scaloni’s men enjoyed 56% possession of the ball and registered 12 shots with seven on target. The Selecao only managed 44% ball possession with three total shots and one on target.

After the match, Vinicius launched a scathing evaluation of his side’s performance and urged improvement. The Brazilian winger said after the game (via Madrid Zone):

“We played very badly while Argentina played an excellent game in front of their fans. We have to rethink everything we did. We need to improve and not give up, only 1 year is left till World Cup.”

The result meant Argentina are now sitting at the summit of the CONMEBOL World Cup qualifiers table with 31 points after 14 games. Brazil, on the other hand, are in the fourth position with 21 points after the same number of games.

Brazil captain Marquinhos apologizes to supporters after "embarrassing" defeat to Argentina

Marquinhos tendered an apology to Brazil supporters after they fell to a 4-1 defeat. The Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) center-back admitted that his side started the game very badly and promised that such a performance would not happen again.

“What we did here today can't happen again,' Raphinha told Brazilian TV Globo (via Daily Mail).

“It's hard to talk about it in the heat of the moment... It's embarrassing.cWe started the game very badly, far below what we could do and they're on a great run of confidence. They knew how to play smart... I'm sorry for our fans," he added.

Marquinhos added that the whole team was responsible for the demoralizing defeat and not just the coach. He concluded:

“It's not just the coach's fault... It's the players' fault too. There's no secret formula in football where you make a choice and it works out. We can all do better. We have to share the blame.''

As things stand, La Albiceleste have secured their spot for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, while Dorival Junior's men have their work cut out to secure an automatic berth.