Goals: Brazil—Luiz 16’; Sanchez—32’
Recap: It took five rounds of penalties, but Brazil was able to move past Chile in Belo Horizonte on Saturday.
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An own-goal from Chile’s Gonzalo Jara gifted Brazil a 1-0 lead in the 16th minute. Just don’t expect the record books to reflect that. The corner-kick goal was wrongly awarded to David Luiz, even though the replays definitively say otherwise. Brazil led early nonetheless. There was, however, zero doubts about Chile’s equalizer just 16 minutes later. A clinical finish from Alexis Sanchez leveled the match before the half.
Almost 90 minutes later, the match still required a winner. Jara’s penalty off the post provided it, seeing Brazil through to the quarterfinals.
Key Moment: Chile had one final opportunity to bury the host nation in extra time. A screaming strike from distance rattled off the crossbar, denying Mauricio Pinilla the opportunity to shock the world. Sixty seconds later, referee Howard Webb blew the final whislte, leaving the match to chance.
Man of the Match: No player proved to be more dangerous on the afternoon than Chile’s Alexis Sanchez. The 25-year-old provided the team’s only goal of the match, but his menacing runs at defenders allowed him to finish with six take-ons won.
Lesson Learned: Brazil won’t survive another performance like today’s. Chile managed to frustrate the host nation, allowing just 69 percent of its passes to be completed. At times, Brazil looked uneasy and unable to match the expectations of the moment. It will only intensify from here. More composure will be needed. If not, Brazil will ultimately succumb to the pressure. The woodwork can only save you so many times.
Up Next: Brazil advances to the quarterfinals, while Chile returns home to prepare for the 2015 Copa America.
Note: Credit all statistics to officially licensed data from Opta Sports (via WhoScored).
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