After sealing a 4-1 victory over a Cameroon side that once again struggled to produce any kind of cohesive performance, Brazil took top spot in Group A with a minimum of fuss and can now set their sights on a Last 16 tie with Chile.
Yet while the Selecao players did exactly what was required of them in recording an ultimately comfortable win, to follow a controversial victory over Croatia on opening night and a point earned against a well-drilled Mexico side, it remains to be seen whether the host nation have enough in their locker to overcome the bigger teams and go all the way in the tournament.
With the next obstacle in their path towards world domination coming in the form of a Chile side that have surprised many with their quality, they pose a considerably sterner test than anything thrown at Brazil so far, questioning whether the players can handle the intense pressure coming in equal measure from facing high-calibre opposition and their fans expectations.
While the enormous sense of anticipation surrounding the host nation will have grown further following their victory over the Indomitable Lions, in which Neymar again demonstrated his undoubted match-winning ability with a well-taken brace, triumphing over possibly the weakest nations in the competition tells very little about this Brazil side’s true pedigree and there are still questions that require answering.
Against Cameroon they were careless in possession at times and occasionally looked bereft of ideas moving forward, but more worryingly there remains an over-reliance on the performances of star man Neymar.
With his teammates constantly looking to find the 22-year-old striker at every opportunity Brazil run the risk of becoming one-dimensional in their style of play, something that cannot succeed on a consistent basis at this level.
In a manner similar to the performances we have seen from Argentina and Portugal so far, Brazil’s lack of pace when moving the ball around has meant that they have struggled to break teams down without the individual magic from their poster boy.
A key problem is that while the Brazil squad is undoubtedly full of match-winners, so far the other strikers have laboured. His tap-in against Cameroon aside, Fred has disappointed in all three group games and Hulk has been unconvincing when he has been on the pitch.
At the back meanwhile, there were a few rash challenges flying in and, in allowing an inferior side to craft several worrying openings demonstrated that they can be vulnerable when without the ball – something that will be capitalised upon by stronger opposition.
Chile’s aggressive and high-intensity style of play is perfectly tailored to prey upon these shortcomings, and now is the time for coach Luiz Felipe Scolari to make the necessary changes.
While he would be quite right to retain a key emphasis on finding Neymar in such mesmerising form, there needs to be a bit more variation introduced into their play. Scolari is notoriously loyal to his charges in the face of fluctuating form, after three games without too much flair flowing through the side, perhaps it is time to be brave enough to shuffle the pack and allow Brazil to finally live up to their billing as tournament favourites.
Ultimately, despite coming through their group unscathed, the World Cup is yet to start in earnest for the host nation and, for better or worse, we will know a great deal more about this Brazil side come Saturday night in Belo Horizonte.
Follow Joseph Lambert on Twitter: @jaltranslation
