Just four days after Brazil were heavily criticized for their performance against Costa Rica, Vinicius Jr. led his side to a thrilling 4-1 victory over Paraguay, earning Selecao’s first win of the tournament.

After his squad was held to a scoreless draw in their first Copa America 2024 match, Dorival Junior made two changes to his starting XI, inserting Savio and Wendell into the lineup. Brazil’s attack lacked invention on Monday, and the once-Group D favorites looked to make a statement tonight against Paraguay.

How the game unfolded

Unlike Brazil’s patient start against Costa Rica, Vinicius Jr. and co. looked sharp from kickoff, immediately pinning Paraguay into their own half and using quick, decisive passes to create chance after chance. La Albirroja had brief flashes on the attack as the half unfolded, but they were soon forgotten after Cubas got whistled for a blatant handball inside the penalty box. Paqueta stepped up to take the penalty in the 31st minute, but missed horribly wide right.

The midfielder’s mistake was quickly forgotten just four minutes later as Vini Jr. made a brilliant run inside the box, drawing two defenders and the goalkeeper to ground before slotting home a right-footed strike for the game’s opening goal.

The Real Madrid player’s breakthrough seemed to ignite Brazil’s attackers. Rodrygo, who had a relatively quiet first half, forced a save from Morinigo that rebounded to Savio for the easy score. Then, just before the halftime whistle, Paraguay failed to clear a brilliant ball over the top, and Vini Jr. made Daniel Garnero’s defense pay the price, scoring his second goal of the night from three yards out.

Up 3-0, the Selecao took their foot off the gas coming out of halftime. Paraguay got themselves on the scoresheet in the 48th minute off a powerful half volley from Alderete that beat Alisson near post from 25 yards out. Brazil were not done scoring, though. Paraguay were whistled for another handball, and this time, Paqueta buried the penalty shoot to put his side up 4-1 in the 65th minute.

The last major action of the match occurred when Cubas was sent off in the 81st minute after kicking at Luiz while the two were on the ground after a collision.

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GK: Alisson – 7/10 – Alisson had much more to do tonight than he did against Costa Rica, and the keeper did well to hold Paraguay to just one goal, especially in the second half when his team allowed Paraguay to get quality chances on goal.

RB: Danilo – 7/10 – Danilo linked up well with Savio on the right as Vini Jr. dominated the left, giving Paraguay virtually no room to breathe every time Brazil pushed forward.

CB: Marquinhos – 6/10 – Marquinhos did not have too much to do tonight as his side dominated possession, but the PSG man still proved to be one of the most reliable players for Dorival Junior when called upon.

CB: Eder Militao – 6/10 – No signs of his ACL injury lingering as the defender played 89 minutes tonight, helping his backline limit Paraguay’s scoring opportunities.

LB: Wendell – 6/10 – Wendell looked much better at left-back than Arana did last match, prompting a few questions for Dorival Junior about why the Porto defender was left on the bench against Costa Rica.

CM: Joao Gomes – 6/10 – Gomes had much less to do tonight than in Brazil’s first match, but the midfielder was still effective, tracking back to defend when he needed to and easily switching his attention forward to play balls out wide to Danilo or Wendell.

CM: Bruno Guimaraes – 6/10 – Bruno had a rare inconsistent night. The midfielder made several poor tackles that gifted Paraguay free kicks, but ultimately, he still controlled the tempo of the match and facilitated quick passes forward to keep Brazil on the attack.

RW: Savio – 7/10 – Savio scored his first goal for Brazil tonight, showing his manager why he should continue to start over Raphinha. The winger also won the second penalty for Brazil.

AM: Lucas Paqueta – 6/10 – Paqueta provided the assist on Vini Jr.’s first goal, and was a lively fixture in Brazil’s attack. The midfielder badly missed a penalty, though, but he made up for it in the second half, scoring Brazil’s fourth goal from the spot.

LW: Vinicius Junior – 8/10 – After a disappointing performance against Costa Rica, Vini Jr. showed why he is one of the best players in the world. Velazquez was no match for the Brazilian on the left side of the pitch, and Paraguay’s defense could do nothing to stop Vini Jr. from scoring his first ever brace for Brazil.

ST: Rodrygo – 6/10 – Rodrygo had a poor start to the game, seemingly always making the wrong decision when the ball fell to him in the final third. The Real Madrid player bounced back, though, and forced the save that led to Brazil’s second goal.

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Substitutes

Raphinha- 5/10 – Raphinha’s biggest contribution to the team was standing up for Luiz, who was the victim of a kick out from Cubas that resulted in a straight red.

Douglas Luiz – 5/10 – Douglas Luiz played his first minutes of the tournament after most fans believed he should have started tonight. The midfielder drew a red card after a collision with Cubas.

Endrick – 5/10 – Endrick was rather quiet in his appearance tonight as Brazil were content to leave Las Vegas with a 4-1 victory.

Andreas Pereira – 5/10 – Pereira only played 11 minutes plus stoppage time, earning a standard five.

Gabriel – N/A – Gabriel came on in the 89th minute for Militao.

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Manager

Dorival Junior – 8/10 – Dorival Junior made the necessary changes to Brazil’s starting XI so his team could show what they are capable of at Copa America 2024. Raphinha had two underwhelming performances leading up to tonight’s match, and his manager made the right decision to bench him and start Savio, who scored Brazil’s second second goal and won the penalty for their fourth.

Dorival Junior’s biggest test, though, is Brazil’s final Group Stage match against Colombia on July 2. If his side takes all three points, then they will win Group D, but Los Cafeteros are on a 25-game unbeaten run, and only need a draw to stay atop the group.