Ageing Brazil need major surgery - but is Ancelotti the man to do it?

Brazil's national football team is in crisis after a disappointing World Cup performance, with the loss to Norway highlighting deep-seated issues in midfield and squad selection. The team's failure to progress beyond the group stage is described as an "unmitigated disaster," a stark contrast to previous tournaments where they were eliminated in the quarter-finals.

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This, frankly, is an unmitigated disaster.

Coach Carlo Ancelotti, who took over after a significant loss to Argentina, has a mixed record of 10 wins, three draws, and three losses in 16 games. While he improved the team's World Cup qualifying performance, it was not enough to salvage their tournament. The article points to a fundamental problem: Brazil's decline in imaginative central midfield play, which has led to them being comprehensively outplayed by Norway.

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Brazil now need major surgery - starting with the area of the field where they used to be so strong, so creative, so entrancing - the midfield.

The team's midfield struggles are exacerbated by the reliance on Casemiro, whose vulnerability in open space was evident. The absence of Lucas Paqueta due to injury further compounded the issue, with Ancelotti admitting he lacked a player with similar characteristics. The coach's initial squad selection, with only five midfielders, is also criticized as a lapse.

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Ancelotti confessed that he did not have another player with the same characteristics.

Beyond tactical and selection issues, the article suggests a broader national problem: Brazil produces an abundance of wide strikers but lacks quality midfielders. The handling of Neymar's inclusion is also questioned, with Ancelotti's decision to call him up despite his perceived decline in form being seen as a misstep, especially given his previous stance on not selecting injured players.

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Brazil is producing more wide strikers than it knows what to do with, but not enough quality midfielders.