Brazil vs Bolivia: BRA vs BOL – Fernando Diniz will be starting Brazil’s campaign for 2026 World Cup qualifiers. He will look to put the heel into it with a few wins before Carlo Ancelotti officially joins next year. Since Selecao were knocked out of the 2022 World Cup, they have lost 2 friendlies out of the 3 they’ve played. Diniz will be looking to avoid another defeat at any cost in their first competitive match since the World Cup. They also have the best home game record. They have not lost a single World Cup qualifier match since 1998.
Brazil will take on Bolivia at home in their first competitive game following last year’s World Cup. Selecao managed to qualify to last year’s World Cup quarter-finals, but lost to European opponents Croatia in penalty shootouts. They will now look to qualify for the 2026 World Cup starting with the side that have the worst away game record in World Cup qualifiers. Bolivia have not qualified for any World Cup since 1994. Hence, they will try their hardest to qualify for the coming World Cup.
In their first friendly after the World Cup, Brazil lost 2-1 to Morocco. They came back to winning ways in the next friendly with a 4-1 win against Guinea. However, they lost the next friendly by a 2-4 margin against Senegal. To win their first competitive match, Selecao will field the strongest XI. Hence, Neymar has been included in the squad despite his move to Saudi Arabia last month. Both Man City’s Ederson and Liverpool’s Alisson have been called up for the fixture.
They are joined by Newcastle United trio Bruno Guimaraes and Joelinton and surprise addition Matheus Cunha. Meanwhile, both Real Madrid stars Eder Militao and Vinicius Jr will miss the clash due to injury. Additionally, West Ham’s Lucas Paqueta has been excluded due to betting allegations and Man United’s Antony has been excluded due to domestic abuse allegations. Considering the options the coach has, he might go for Gabriel Jesus instead of Richarlison in the final third despite the Spurs forward’s recent form with Brazil.
Brazil vs Bolivia Predicted XI:
Brazil Predicted XI: Alisson; Vanderson, Marquinhos, Gabriel, Caio Henrique; Casemiro, Bruno Guimaraes, Joelinton; Raphinha, Gabriel Jesus, Neymar
Bolivia Predicted XI: Lampe; Jose Sagredo, Quinteros, Roca; Diego Bejarano, Cespedes, Quiroga, Fernandez, Miguelito; Algaranaz, Moreno
