Anxiety hinders Raphinha in the search for the first goal in the Cup

The scene caught the attention of those who were at stadium 974, in Doha, on Monday (5). Brazil was already beating South Korea 4-0, but Raphinha showed a look of frustration, with teary eyes, on the way back for the second half.

Neymar realized this and hugged his teammate, trying not only to console but also to motivate the right winger. They are very friendly.

The number 11 had a good game, gave an assist to Vinicius Junior, but still couldn’t score his first goal in the World Cup in Qatar. Fasting has been messing with the athlete.

“I confess that I’m a little anxious to score my goal”, he admitted after the match, won by the Brazilians by 4 to 1. “I really believe that things happen when they have to happen. for the same goal, victory. God willing, the goal will come out at the right time.”

Of the holders of the Canarinho team’s attack, he is the only one who has not yet hit the net, even though he is the one who finishes the most. There are 11 conclusions in total, the same number as Neymar, who scored his first in the tournament against the South Koreans, with a penalty.

Vinicius Junior also hit the net for the first time against the Asian opponent. Richarlison is the team’s top scorer, with three goals in the tournament.

Raphinha was on the field in all of Brazil’s games at the World Cup. He just wasn’t in the starting line-up against Cameroon, a match in which Tite used substitutes. Thus, it adds up to 261 minutes played.

It is also one of the most participatory. He was the one that executed the most crosses in the game against South Korea, with five, and the one that made the most runs at high speed, 70. In the total of the match, he covered 10.7 km, according to FIFA statistics.

He belongs to the group that Tite nicknamed “fast legs”, a group that includes players like Vinicius Junior, Antony and Gabriel Martinelli.

The gaucho was one of the last to gain the confidence of the coach. He only started to be part of the Brazilian squad in September 2021, just over a year before the World Cup. His name was taken to the commander by Matheus Bacchi, son and one of the coach’s assistants.

The gamble did not take long to prove successful. On his debut, against Venezuela, in Caracas, the striker at the time for little Leeds, from England, was responsible for taking the Brazilian team to the comeback, with assists for Marquinhos and Antony, in a duel for the Qualifiers.

The first goal didn’t take long either. He came in the third game for the national team, the first as a starter, against Uruguay. There were two, in fact, in the 4-1 rout. He closed the qualifying tournament with three, also punishing Paraguay.

Despite fasting in the four Cup games, he hasn’t been without scoring for the national team for a long time. In the last friendly before the tournament, against Tunisia, he scored twice in the 5-1 defeat.

The good performances made him quickly gain the starting position, a condition with which he started the World Cup. They also helped in his transfer to Barcelona, ​​where he performed in July.

Against Croatia, he seeks to relive his best moments in the yellow-green. But he predicts difficulties in the match on Friday (9), for the quarterfinals. “It’s a great selection, otherwise it wouldn’t be in the quarterfinals. We know what we have to do, what we have to work on.”

He, however, admitted that he is not the type to study rivals. He doesn’t even watch World Cup games.

“I don’t watch anything about the World Cup. I don’t like to watch the games, I prefer to watch movies or series,” he said. “Why do I have to know something about Messi or Mbappé? I don’t like it. I know they are the best and that’s fine,” he added.

Argentine Messi has three goals in Qatar. Frenchman Mbappé is the top scorer at the World Cup, with five. Mal, therefore, would not make Raphinha watch at least the pair’s games to be inspired in search of his first goal.