Brazil haven’t lost the opening game of a World Cup since 1934 and only the brilliance of Real Madrid star Vinicius Junior saved them here in New Jersey.All of Carlo Ancelotti’s nightmares came true in an opening half an hour at the MetLife that saw AFCON champions Morocco take the lead and threaten to blow the five-time champions off the face of the planet.The great Italian coach perhaps knew he was taking a risk by pairing 34-year-old Casemiro with Newcastle’s Bruno Guimaraes at the heart of his midfield as temperatures nudged 90 degrees at kick-off.And Brazil were trailing by one and hanging on grimly when Vini Jnr scored the goal of the World Cup so far, shimmying inside to shoot powerfully into the far corner to send the big South American contingent wild in the 32nd minute.Ancelotti rang the changes at half-time as he tried to shore things up and the second half passed largely without incident. They were better. Given the way the game had started for Brazil, a draw was a decent outcome and means they can still fight for the top position in this group that could be so important.Morocco are a good side and shouldn’t be under-estimated. They were semi-finalists in Qatar back in 2022 and played with a confidence and freedom here that served notice that they could move quite some way into this tournament themselves.Brazil will have to be an awful lot better than this if they are to make an impact of their own, though. This was not the opening effort of a team that can have a realistic shot at winning the World Cup for the first time since 2002.
Brazil 1-1 Morocco: Ancelotti's side can't just rely on Vinicius Jnr
IAN LADYMAN IN NEW JERSEY: Brazil haven't lost the opening game of a World Cup since 1934 and only the brilliance of Real Madrid star Vinicius Junior saved them here.










