Despite Tunisia’s shaky backline throughout the contest, Carlo Ancelotti’s Brazilian side struggled to find its rhythm. Misplaced passes, off-target attempts, and Lucas Paquetá’s wasted penalty proved costly. In the end, the Estevão–Vinicius duo had to accept a 1-1 draw in Brazil’s final match of the year.
Brazil arrived in Lille, France, just after midnight on Tuesday, carrying the confidence of a solid win over the strong African side Senegal in their previous fixture. But instead of building on that momentum, they found themselves frustrated by Tunisia.
They dominated with 73% possession and took 22 shots, yet only three were on target. Tunisia, meanwhile, managed two shots on target out of seven attempts.
“𝑩𝒓𝒂𝒛𝒊𝒍 𝒉𝒂𝒅 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒍 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒍𝒂𝒄𝒌𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒖𝒕𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒆𝒅𝒈𝒆 𝒏𝒆𝒆𝒅𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒔𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒂𝒎𝒆,” 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒂𝒍𝒚𝒔𝒕 𝒇𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒘𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒄𝒉.
Estevão Willian scored Brazil’s only goal from the penalty spot after they had earlier fallen behind. Hazem Mastouri put Tunisia ahead in the 23rd minute during a chaotic moment in the Brazilian defence. Although they levelled before halftime, Paquetá’s later penalty miss and a series of wasted chances meant the Seleção could not secure the win.
The vibrant and fluid play from their last match was nowhere to be seen—an alarming sign for Ancelotti and the five-time world champions as they prepare for the World Cup.
Estevão Shines Again, but Brazil’s Finishing Fails to Deliver
Brazil kept Tunisia under constant pressure from the opening whistle, yet failed to convert their dominance into goals. Tunisia capitalised with Mastouri controlling a long pass inside the D-box before finishing neatly into the corner in the 23rd minute.
Rodrygo and Vinicius tried hard to respond quickly, with Rodrygo nearly scoring from a superb free-kick. However, the Tunisia goalkeeper pulled off a brilliant save, tipping the ball out for a corner.
They were awarded a penalty in the 44th minute after a handball, and Estevão made no mistake, smashing the ball in with his left foot to level the match.
The 18-year-old Chelsea talent has now scored five goals in his last six international games, becoming the top scorer of the year. Even though Ancelotti has deployed him as an attacking midfielder or forward, Estevão continues to shine in every role.
After the break, they maintained their aggressive approach, but Tunisia’s determined defence blocked every attempt. Adding to their frustration, Éder Militão limped off with an injury, joining Gabriel Magalhães on the growing injury list—another worrying sign for both Brazil and their clubs, Real Madrid and Arsenal.
“𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒊𝒏𝒋𝒖𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒎𝒊𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒄𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒅𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒅 𝑩𝒓𝒂𝒛𝒊𝒍’𝒔 𝒅𝒐𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆,” 𝒂 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒎 𝒊𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒓 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒅.
Ancelotti also handed a debut to Vitor Roque, who won a penalty in the 76th minute after being fouled. But Paquetá squandered the opportunity, blowing Brazil’s last real chance to win the match.
With no fixtures until March, they have time to regroup—but this draw raises serious questions about their preparation and consistency ahead of the World Cup.
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