Two late second half goals propel Chile over Brazil on Thursday at the Estadio Naciocal de Chile in Santiago.
Chilean forward Eduardo Vargas kicking the ball into the net at the 72nd minute gave La Roja the 1-0 lead over Brazil. The relentless forward completed midfielder Matías Fernández's set piece from the right hand side of the field. His goal proved to be the eventual game winner.
In the first half, the Canarinho offense were putting pressure on Chile’s defense. The Samba Kings took six of their 13 shots in the first half; however, Brazil was without Barcelona star player Neymar, since he is currently serving a suspension. The execution in the final third was lacking without him, as the Canarinho’s were only able to get one shot on target.
Willian, Hulk, Oscar and Marcelo were consistently creating problems for the backline of La Roja; however, Chile’s goalkeeper Claudio Bravo was mainly just catching crosses as he only had to make one save during the 90 minutes. The best example was when Hulk took a free kick near the top of the penalty box. He was in prime position to score or at least force a corner, but instead he shot sailed wide right.
Both nations had an even 50/50 of possession of the ball. The only difference was that Chile took advantage and put the Canarinho on their heels several times.
Chile also took 13 shots, but they were able to put six of them on frame. Brazilian goalie Jefferson was called into action four times to keep La Roja at bay. Not to mention he and the Samba Kings benefited with the post being on their side.
Chile’s forward Alexis Sánchez was a terror for Brazil, and he nearly gave La Roja the lead right before the first half ended. He recuperated the loose ball in the penalty box with his back to the goal. Sánchez then quickly turned with the ball and launched a rocket to the top left hand corner of the net. The shot had Jefferson beat, but before the ball ripped the back of the net, it dinged off the post and Brazil breathed in relief.
In the second half, Chile took over and the Samba Kings struggled to contain their free flowing offense. In the 55th minute, Chile’s midfielder Maurico Isla blasted an accurate shot from the far right. Isla shot seemed to be a goal, until it scrapped off the post. Somehow their efforts were not paying off and the score remained scoreless.
Finally, Chile made it 1-0 when Vargas chipped the ball into the back of the net at the 72nd minute; however, La Roja was not satisfied with the narrow lead as they continued to push for their second goal. Right before the game ended, Sánchez sealed the victory when he followed up his own shot to end the game 2-0.
After this result, Chile sits in first place with three points. They now travel to Peru on the 13th of Oct for their second match. The game will mark the 43rd meeting between the two rivals and the Clásico Del Pacífico will take place at the Estadio Nacional in Lima.
Brazil is currently in ninth place with a negative two goal differential and zero points; however, for their next game they will be hosting Venezuela on Oct the 13th at the Estádio Castelão in Fortaleza.