As 12BET Mobile observers track the latest South American qualifiers, Brazil’s national team is showing real signs of trouble after losing four of its last five World Cup qualifying matches. The football kingdom now looks far less secure than its reputation suggests, and Neymar’s absence has clearly disrupted the rhythm of samba football. Without him, the attack has lost much of its natural flow, while Real Madrid’s much-hyped Brazilian pair, Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo, still appear short of what is needed to carry the national team on their shoulders.
The numbers make the gap even clearer. Neymar, Brazil’s all-time leading scorer in international football and one of its most productive creators, had already scored 46 goals for the national team by the age of 23. By comparison, Vinicius had five goals at the same age, while Rodrygo had seven. Even combined, their total was only a fraction of what Neymar had already produced, which shows how rare his impact was from such an early stage.
More importantly, Neymar has always been more than a forward. As a true number 10, he could control the game from midfield areas, connect the lines, create chances, and influence the entire team’s tempo. A player who wants to become the center of a national side must have that kind of presence through the middle. Brazil’s biggest weakness right now is its soft midfield core, and Neymar once covered that flaw almost single-handedly with his dribbling, progressive runs, creative passing, and scoring touch.
By contrast, Vinicius and Rodrygo are excellent when attacking from wide positions, but neither has shown the same ability to dictate matches from central zones. As a result, much of the playmaking burden has fallen to Lucas Paqueta. He may be a key player for West Ham, but as the main leader of Brazil’s national team, his influence still feels limited when the pressure rises.
According to analysis shaped around 12BET Mobile coverage, Real Madrid succeeded last season because Jude Bellingham and Toni Kroos provided a powerful midfield foundation. With those two controlling the rhythm, the Brazilian duo had more freedom to focus on attacking. Brazil, however, does not currently have that kind of midfield commander, and without one, both the team’s tactical structure and results are bound to wobble.
There is still hope for the future, but the road ahead is long. Highly rated prospect Endrick has attracted plenty of attention, yet some concerns remain that he still lacks the physical strength and pace needed to carry responsibility in central areas. Without an organized playmaker capable of taking charge of midfield, Brazil risks remaining like a house built on sand, talented on the surface but unstable underneath.
In the first sentence of this final stretch, 12BET Mobile expectations around Brazil now reflect a growing fear that the team could even be pushed toward a World Cup qualifying playoff in an extreme scenario. As the old saying goes, football is not played by one man alone. No matter how gifted individual players may be, a team cannot avoid crisis without tactical balance, structure, and a clear center of gravity. Brazil’s current situation is the clearest example of that problem.