As the clock approached 90 minutes at the Estadio Monumental in Lima, Peru, it looked a certainty that Rafael Santos Borré’s 14th-minute strike had given River Plate a second successive Copa Libertadores title.
GOAL FOR RIVER PLATE!
It's the Colombian forward Rafael Santos Borre that gives the defending champs the early lead here in Lima! #LIBERTADORES FINAL LIVE NOW
Looking for something a little more real and a little less tired than José Mourinho’s fourth Premier League “debut” this weekend? We know just the thing: The 2019 Copa Libertadores Final takes place on Saturday, Nov. 23, with defending champion River Plate (ARG) playing Flamengo (BRA) at Estadio Monumental in Lima, Peru.
After Brazil lost to Lionel Messi and Argentina on Friday, Brazil legend Rivaldo, one of the great No. 10s in the history of the game, spoke out against 22-year-old Lucas Paquetá wearing the No. 10 jersey for the Canarinha.
In the absence of Neymar, who is out injured, Paquetá was handed the iconic No. 10 yellow shirt, through no fault of his own. The AC Milan midfielder was then subbed out at halftime of his 10th senior cap with the Seleção.
Mexico pushed Brazil to the brink in the final of Sunday's 2019 FIFA U-17 World Cup, but late goals from Kaio Jorge and Lázaro sent a raucous crowd of over 15,000 into raptures in Brasília. Inspirational captain Eugenio Pizzuto had provided the assist on Bryan Gonzalez’s opener for El Tri in the 66th minute, but Brazil’s ferocious comeback began in the 84th with Kaio’s VAR-assisted penalty and ended — just before the match was headed straight to a shootout — with Lázaro’s stunning winner with only one minute remaining in stoppage time.
Gabriel Jesus and Lionel Messi both missed first-half penalty kicks. Only Messi followed it up with a goal.
The Brazilian hit his PK wide moments before Messi had his effort saved by Alisson, allowing the Argentine to poke home the rebound in the 13th minute. Messi notched his 69th career international goal for Argentina to propel his side to a narrow 1-0 win over rival Brazil in a friendly on Friday in Saudi Arabia.
What does Joga bonito mean?
Well, we can show you what it doesn’t mean.
Joga bonito usually refers to Brazilians playing the beautiful game beautifully, as only Brazilians can. Think 1970 Brazil in full flowing force or the 2002 Canaries zipping past all comers. It’s Pelé, Ronaldo and Ronaldinho.
But this clip out of Brazil on Saturday shows the complete opposite of Joga bonito, looking more like capoeira than anything else.
It’s not been the best week for Neymar. On Monday, the Brazilian missed out on the 30-player shortlist for the 2019 Ballon d’Or award. On Tuesday, he missed PSG’s 5-0 beatdown of Club Brugge due to a hamstring injury he picked up on international duty.
We’re a little over a month away from the 2019 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup in Asunción, Paraguay, but the defending champion has just delivered a timely reminder of its mastery of the sand. The World Beach Games wrapped up yesterday in Doha, Qatar, and it was Brazil that captured the men’s beach soccer title following a 9-3 victory over Russia in the gold medal match.
It’s easy to get cynical about the Brasil Global Tour sponsored by Chevrolet, which is simply adspeak for the series of globetrotting friendlies that the Seleção contests in between Copa Américas, World Cups and World Cup qualifying.
In the preposterously bloated football calendar, nobody likes a meaningless friendly. But what’s Brazil supposed to do during the international break with no qualifying stage for the 2020 Copa América and with 2022 World Cup qualifying matches not beginning until March of 2021?