The press was a Band-Aid on a major shift in the way Brazil play and curate talent. Their players have assimilated more to European ways, which is why I think they keep getting knocked out by European teams.

They have lost all seven of their knockout ties versus European teams since winning the 2002 World Cup: France in 2006, Netherlands in 2010, Germany in 2014, Netherlands in 2014, Belgium in 2018, Croatia in 2022, Norway in 2026. Out.

You cannot beat a European team at its own game, not even teams like Belgium, Croatia, and Norway. Argentina had success because they play their own game.

They never showed the same hunger to win back the ball that they did in the friendlies before the tournament. You cannot fail to press in the World Cup of the press.

Watch Kylian Mbappé. He is pressing more than twice as often for France, 22.88 times per 90, as he did last season at Real Madrid, 10.40 times per 90. ¹

Look at the way Mexico and Argentina hunt. They lose the ball, and then they have three players converging on the ball from all angles. You are not allowed to breathe when you win back possession.

That is what I expected from Brazil, but we never saw it once during the tournament. That is what is disappointing.

There was a lot of walking and waiting from the Brazilian players against Norway. The plan was clear: wait and counter. But how are you going to counter effectively if you do not win the ball off a midfielder?

Without Martinelli, they would never have created chances against Norway. Martinelli was the only player hunting the ball down with his pace whenever Berg, Ødegaard, or Berge received the ball. That little injection of pace, like a torpedo running at you, and he has that intelligence from playing with Arsenal to know how to stick a foot in and win duels.

You win the ball off a midfielder, and then you have numbers in attack. But when you try to counter from your own end, you need the trio of Vinícius, Cunha, and Raphinha. When Cunha received the ball, he had Vinícius, and that was it. That is not enough because you need someone to distract defenders from Vinícius.

Martinelli is the one to help distract defenders from Vinícius, but if he is the one winning back the ball, then he is always going to be a step behind the attack. 35% possession in the first half is not enough. They never had the numbers on the counter to pin Norway back. Norway never felt consistently threatened therefore they had to fight with less possession.

They lack their normal identity, the personality their fans and culture expect them to show. When faced with a difficult situation, they retreat into their shell. They hear the voices of Luis Enrique, Mikel Arteta, Eddie Howe, Rubén Amorim, Michael Carrick, and every other manager before them in the back of their heads when they receive the ball. The muscle memory of training at their clubs kicks in.

These are habits that are hard to break. The question is whether Brazil will lean into this or go the way of Argentina, who continue to hire managers like Lionel Scaloni to embrace who they have been for generations. Or will they continue to try to play the European way? They tried with Fernando Diniz but the players rejected it.

When they play like the other South American teams, they are the most exciting and dynamic team in all of world football because they are more talented with the ball at their feet than the other teams on the continent. They can score goals at will when they play their game.