Brazil 0-1 Colombia: 3 things we learned as Neymar and Selecao see red

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Colombia beat Brazil 1-0 Wednesday in their second game of the group stage in this year’s Copa América.

It was Los Cafeteros’ first victory in any competition over Brazil in 24 years. A year ago, in the World Cup in Brazil, Colombia fought hard and rightfully deserved more in a 2-1 quarterfinal loss to the hosts. Their victory Wednesday settled the score.

A Brazil side in the midst of transition will unfortunately look upon the defeat with with less humility than outrage. Head coach Dunga lost for the first time since he returned to Brazil’s helm last July. Though he’d won 11 matches in succession prior to this defeat, this result felt like it had been coming. Their stoppage time victory over a lively Peru Sunday felt largely undeserved. Dunga’s famous defensive resolve was tested to its limit and beyond. A prototypically talented Brazilian forward line has failed to show up in any meaningful way but for the occasionally otherworldly efforts of Neymar. And even his guiding light was blown out Wednesday night.

Unlike Brazil, Colombia clearly were willing and able to learn from their mistakes. After suffering a humiliating 1-0 loss to their rivals Venezuela in their opening game of the tournament, Colombia showed up Wednesday to prove they were better than that result and succeeded wildly.

Their task was made easier by a Brazil side drunk on empty confidence. For long stretches of the first half Brazil seemed overwhelmed by Colombia’s kinetic offense, much as they had been against Peru’s surprising level of aggression. Their attacks fizzled before even reaching Colombia’s 18 yard box, the ball left to be effortlessly shuttled through Brazil’s laughably porous midfield and onto the feat of either James Rodríguez or Juan Cuadrado.

When Colombia’s goal came in the 36th- centerback Jeison Murillo’s first for his country – it felt long overdue. James found plenty of space to work his magic, and Cuadrado regular broke through his multiple markers to influence proceedings. The goal itself was the culmination of several successive set pieces for Colombia that marked the height of their dominance in the first half.

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If the first half was Colombia’s, the second fell to Brazil. They showed up after the interval set to take the game to Colombia and force through a result. Fred was dropped in favor of Coutinho, and from the opening minutes the improvement was evident. Brazil settled down just on the edge of Colombia’s third and never strayed too far from it for the last 45 minutes. It’s debatable if this was a the result of Brazil’s renewed vigor or Colombia’s exhaustion after their frenetic first half, though it was likely a combination of the two.

Regardless, Colombia’s defense held thanks in no small part to the standout performances of Edwin Valencia and especially Carlos Sánchez. The two midfielders doggedly tracked down loose balls and hassled Brazil’s attempts to set up attacks. Sánchez had been instrumental all game in making sure Colombia didn’t miss a beat between recovering the ball and getting it back onto the feet of James or Cuadrado. His was among the better performances of the entire Copa so far, even if his contributions gradually devolved to simple clearances toward the end of the game.

The relief was evident on the faces of the Colombia players when the final whistle blew. They had survived a Brazil onslaught, even if it featured only one real panicked moment when Firmino managed to sky a bumbled ball over a virtually empty net. It was a redemptive performance for the team, made all the sweeter by the fact that it came at the expense of a team that are quickly becoming their primary continental rivals.

Let’s break down some of the key themes and takeaways from the night.

Next: Neymar Sees Red

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