Carlo Ancelotti is preparing sweeping changes to his Brazil line-up for Tuesday's second friendly against Australia. One man stays put. The Barcelona star Raphinha keeps his place, rewarded for his striking form for club and country.
Brazil scraped a 1-1 draw against Australia in the first meeting, salvaging the point in stoppage time after a lacklustre display from the Seleção.
According to the Brazilian newspaper Globo Esporte, Ancelotti plans to deploy Raphinha as a centre-forward, drawing on his success in the number 9 role for Barcelona this season.
The winger has made an exceptional start at Barcelona, scoring 14 goals in 8 matches and adding 3 assists. That output has convinced Ancelotti to try him in the same role for Brazil.
Against Australia, Raphinha played the whole game as a deep-lying forward, a playmaker behind Endrick, and he created the equaliser that Rayan headed home in the 90+5th minute as Brazil stared down an embarrassing defeat.
Vinícius Júnior and Rayan are expected to line up alongside Raphinha in attack, at the expense of Endrick and Estêvão, while Bruno Guimarães holds his place in midfield.
Ancelotti is heading towards changing almost the entire starting XI, the newspaper adds, keeping only Raphinha, Vinícius and Bruno Guimarães as he searches for the right blend ahead of the challenges to come.