DistantNews
Support us
🇻🇪 Venezuela /Sports

Ancelotti: Brazil has no 'anti-Haaland' plan

From El Nacional · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Ongoing story
  • Brazil's coach Carlo Ancelotti stated there is no specific "anti-Haaland" plan for their World Cup match against Norway.
  • Ancelotti acknowledged Haaland's danger but emphasized Brazil's focus on preparing for the team as a whole.
  • He also noted Norway's strengths, including Martin Ødegaard, and expressed confidence in Brazil's ability to improve.

Brazil's national team coach, Carlo Ancelotti, has stated that his team does not have a specific "anti-Haaland" strategy ahead of their World Cup Round of 16 match against Norway. Ancelotti acknowledged the threat posed by the prolific Norwegian striker, who has scored five goals in the tournament so far, but stressed that Brazil's defense, including Marquinhos and Gabriel Magalhães, knows how to handle him.

Anti-Haaland plan does not exist. I am not going to explain how to mark Haaland or how to play against Haaland to Gabriel, who has played against him many times, or to Marquinhos.

— Carlo AncelottiAddressing the lack of a specific defensive plan solely for Erling Haaland.

"There is no 'anti-Haaland' plan. I am not going to explain how to mark Haaland or how to play against Haaland to Gabriel, who has played against him many times, or to Marquinhos," Ancelotti said during the pre-match press conference. He added that "everyone knows" the Manchester City striker is "very dangerous" and that Brazil's focus is on "preparing well for the match, including Haaland's characteristics."

Everyone knows he is very dangerous.

— Carlo AncelottiDescribing the threat posed by Erling Haaland.

Beyond Haaland, Ancelotti also highlighted Norway's other key players, including Martin Ødegaard, whom he coached at Real Madrid. He described Norway as a "difficult and very balanced team, with structure and quality," emphasizing the need for Brazil to perform at its best. The Italian coach expressed his usual mix of concern and eagerness, noting that Brazil has not yet reached its peak performance in the tournament and sees room for improvement in both quality and consistency.

Norway is a difficult and very balanced team, with structure and quality. We have to give our maximum. We are confident. We are coming off a match against Japan and we want to improve. We are prepared for everything that may happen. I am worried and anxious, as usual.

— Carlo AncelottiAssessing Norway's strengths and Brazil's mindset heading into the match.

Ancelotti rated Brazil's previous matches with scores ranging from 5 against Morocco to 7.5 against Japan. He anticipates the match against Norway will not be decided by physical aspects or set pieces. The coach remained secretive about who would replace the injured Lucas Paquetá in midfield, suggesting the team's playing style might vary depending on the chosen player, with Danilo Santos and Gabriel Martinelli being strong candidates.

A 5 against Morocco; 6.5 against Haiti; 7 against Scotland and 7.5 against Japan because we left happy.

— Carlo AncelottiRating Brazil's performances in the World Cup matches so far.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by El Nacional in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

More Stories

From Our Blog