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‘Hearts have been broken in Brazil, but they didn’t do enough’: Jermaine Jenas among those criticizing South Americans for not beating Croatia before being eliminated on penalties
Pundits have been quick to criticize Brazil for not watching the match against Croatia, before losing 4-2 on penalties to their European opponents.
After 90 goalless minutes, Brazil and Croatia drew 1-1 after extra time after Bruno Petkovic disallowed Neymar’s opening goal four minutes from time.
The South American team emerged victorious in a penalty shootout, first when Rodrygo was denied with his opening penalty, and then Marquinhos hit the post with a vital penalty to keep Brazil in the game, after Croatia converted all their attempts.
Marquinhos hit the post with Brazil’s last penalty, eliminating them at the expense of Croatia
Speaking to the BBC after the game, Jermaine Jenas said: “Hearts have been broken in Brazil, but they didn’t do enough. They could have done more, they should have done more.
While Brazil was advised by many to go all the way in Qatar, the tournament has been littered with surprises from Saudi Arabia’s defeat of Argentina in the group stage to Morocco’s victory on penalties on Tuesday that eliminated to Spain.
Expert Alex Scott felt it was a continuation of that trend, adding: ‘Brazil were my favourite, they were a lot of people’s favourites. This is a World Cup that continues to surprise.’
Micah Richards spoke about the impact of Brazil’s travel support. The former Man City player said: ‘They can’t believe it because they were so close, yet so far away. It’s like they can’t believe it. The fans have been brilliant.’
Jurgen Klinsmann praised Croatia’s ‘mentality’ after they came from behind to knock out Brazil
Former Germany international Jurgen Klinnsmann added: ‘You are only as good as your opponent. Croatia was resilient. We thought it was over, but they never gave up. It was fantastic, his mentality.
Klinsmann added: ‘He will sit with them deeply, deeply. They prepared for this for a couple of years, going through a grueling sorting process. They were hungry, full of energy, but quality was lacking.’
The 58-year-old said: “The momentum really changed with that Croatian goal, just before the end of extra time. What goes through your head if you’re a Brazilian player, it scares you. The whole nation expects you to get it and you panic. You’re much more nervous because you don’t have time to balance yourself.’
Klinsmann said the result would hit Brazil “deeply” after years of planning in the lead up.
It was only the second loss on penalties Brazil suffered in the men’s World Cup, following their 1986 elimination against France in Guadalajara, Mexico.
That day, Brazil also exited the tournament at the quarterfinal stage, with penalty kicks by Sócrates and Julio César as they lost 4–3. France went on to finish third that year.
More to follow…