Brazil’s Italian coach emphasized the need for mental toughness among his players.
After taking a 2–0 lead in the first half, Brazil suddenly lost their rhythm. Defender Fabrizio Bruno’s two mistakes allowed Japan to score twice, followed by another goal. Following the loss to Japan, Brazil coach Carlo Ancelotti said he wants the team to learn from this experience and move forward. He urged his players to strengthen their mental resilience.
In Tuesday’s international friendly in Tokyo, Brazil took a 2–0 lead within 32 minutes through Paulo Eihik and Gabriel Martinelli. However, between the 52nd and 71st minutes, Japan scored three times, completing a memorable 3–2 comeback victory.
This was Japan’s first win in 14 encounters against the five-time World Cup champions.
Four days earlier in Seoul, Ancelotti had overseen a 5–0 demolition of South Korea, but he made several changes to the lineup for this match, resting Estevão and Rodrigo, who had scored twice previously.
Despite the extensive rotation, Ancelotti remained unfazed. In the post-match press conference, he stressed the importance of learning from mistakes.
“When a team loses, we feel disappointed, which is natural. Everyone feels disappointed. I don’t like losing, and neither do the players. We have to learn from this defeat, just as we always do,” said the former Real Madrid coach.
Brazil’s first goal conceded was essentially gifted by Bruno, who lost control in their box and passed the ball to Takumi Minamino, who made no mistake.
“Until Fabrizio Bruno’s error that led to the first goal, we had the match under good control. After that, the team mentally collapsed. That was the biggest mistake. I don’t think our overall performance in the second half was bad, but that error had a huge impact on the players,” Ancelotti explained.
These friendlies are part of Brazil’s preparation for the 2026 World Cup. Next month, they will face Senegal in London and Tunisia in Paris, using those matches to continue testing different strategies, according to Ancelotti.
“This break and the upcoming international window are for testing and experimentation. In the Korea match, the team played very well; today we played well in the first half but poorly in the second.”
“We need to maintain balance at the World Cup. We must learn from our mistakes. Today’s match was a valuable lesson,” he concluded.
