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Published 23 March 2024 5 min read
England Men's Senior Team

Match Centre: England 0-1 Brazil

Written by:

Charlie Bennett

  • J. Bellingham (13′)
FULL TIME
International Match Friendlies 1
Saturday 23 March, 07:00 PM Wembley Stadium
0 1
HT: 0 - 0
  • Endrick (80′)
  • Lucas Paquetá (34′)
24 Mar 2024 6:30

Highlights: England 0-1 Brazil


See the best of the action from Wembley as the Three Lions narrowly lose

The Three Lions suffer narrow defeat against the South Americans at Wembley

Gareth Southgate and John Stones during the press conference ahead of England v Brazil
Gareth Southgate and John Stones during the press conference ahead of England v Brazil
 

England v Brazil 
Men's International Match
7pm GMT, Saturday 23 March 2024
Wembley Stadium connected by EE

England head coach Gareth Southgate and centre-back John Stones sat down with the media on Friday night to discuss tomorrow’s exciting clash against Brazil.


The Three Lions boss started his press conference at Tottenham Hotspur’s training ground by sending best wishes to the Princess of Wales and her family after she revealed on Friday night that she had been diagnosed with cancer.

Southgate said: “Clearly we’ve just heard about the Princess of Wales and we just wanted to send our thoughts and best wishes to her and all of her family.

“It was a remarkably dignified statement that she gave and we obviously have a very close relationship with the family, so we’re very upset to hear the news but hopefully everything goes well.”

Southgate and Stones were then asked about a wide range of subjects. You can watch the press conference in full below and we have picked out some of his answers relating to Saturday’s match against Brazil at Wembley Stadium connected by EE too.

On the availability of Harry Kane, Jordan Henderson and Cole Palmer for Brazil

“No Harry Kane, no Jordan Henderson and no Cole Palmer. I would say Cole and Hendo have a better chance of Belgium than Harry as he will be extremely doubtful for that.”

On whether Ben Chilwell can play 90 minutes this camp following his return from injury

“Yes, he would be. He missed the last couple of games [for Chelsea] but that wasn't an acute problem as such. It was just something that needed to settle down, and he's trained all week with no problems.”

On having a lot of players missing for games against two of the best teams in the world

“It means that it's a brilliant opportunity for other players. We need to see other players ahead of the EUROs and if we were playing lesser teams, you'd still have that little pressure in your mind that if they played well, then okay, how well are they going to be against the next level of opposition? So from our perspective, it is a great exercise and a great opportunity really.”

On whether the players have a different feeling in camps leading into major tournaments

“I think everybody recognises that we only have two matches before we would name what will probably need to be a longer squad at first in the summer. But we don't need to build these games up because the quality of the opponent does that and the timing of the year does that.

“What I've seen is new players that have come in and have fitted in brilliantly. Our more regular players and our senior players make that as comfortable as possible and I think if you talk to any of the boys that have come in, they would identify that.

“We're really looking forward to the challenge of the two games.”

On honouring Terry Venables during the game with Brazil

“It is brilliant to be able to honour Terry at the game. When you look at English coaches, we haven't had a huge number of English coaches that have had big jobs around European football; Terry and Bobby Robson are probably the two most high profile really, both having managed Barcelona.

“Terry was a brilliant man-manager, tactically very inventive…and the team in 1996 was an extremely experienced group and he was brilliant at managing those big characters.

“I wasn't young, I was 25 when I first went in, but he had the respect of all of the senior players – that was clear – and you have heard them all speak in recent times.

“So it's lovely that he is being recognised and it is lovely that a lot of that 96 squad are coming to the game to do that as well because we want them to feel part of the England family. We think that's important…hopefully that will add another touch to what's a very special occasion.”

On whether the final step in this team's development is to consistently win games against top teams like Brazil and Belgium

“I’ve read that we've only beaten Brazil four times out of 26 games, or something like that. There have been a lot of matches against big opponents that we don't have outstanding records against that this team has managed to beat – Italy twice, being an example, and Spain.

“So it is another opportunity for us to put a marker down and create a little bit more history for these boys.

“We are going to be tested in every aspect of our game, and that is going to be a great challenge for us.”

John Stones on the prospect of facing Brazil

“I don’t see friendly games as friendly games. We are playing against one of the best teams in the world over the past I don't know how many years, a team full of top players playing in numerous countries around the world, with a lot of different attributes.

“It is a bit different this time with injuries and a new manager, as Gareth said, but nonetheless, it is a great test for us as a team to get something out of it and then move on to the game on Tuesday and hopefully finish this week off with two wins.”

Brazil in profile


Nickname:
Selecao
Coach:
 Dorival Junior
Captain: Casemiro
FIFA World Cup best performance: Champions (1958, 1962, 1970, 1994, 2002)
Last encounter: England 0-0 Brazil, Men's International, 14 November 2017, Wembley Stadium connected by EE

 

Match Stats

 

● England have won just four of their 26 matches against Brazil (D11 L11). This 15%-win ratio is England’s worst against any nation they’ve faced at least three times, while they’ve only lost more games against Scotland (41), Wales (14) and Germany (13) than Brazil (11).

● Brazil have won two of their 12 matches against England at Wembley (D7 L3), winning 1-0 in May 1981 and 3-1 in June 1995. This is their first game there against the Three Lions since November 2017, a goalless draw.

● England have won their first match of the calendar year in ten of the last eleven years, including the last six in a row. Their other game in this run was a 1-0 defeat to Germany in 2017.

● England are unbeaten in their last 20 matches at Wembley, their longest unbeaten run at the national stadium since a 24-game run between 1984 and 1990. Their most recent defeat at Wembley was in the UEFA Nations League in October 2020 against Denmark, a 1-0 loss.


● Brazil have won ten of their last eleven friendly matches against European nations (D1), scoring 25 goals and conceding only four times. The last European team to beat them in a friendly was Switzerland in August 2013.

● Brazil have lost their last three matches, losing to Marcelo Bielsa’s Uruguay side, Colombia and then Argentina, all in World Cup qualifiers. They’ve not lost four games in a row since June/July 2001.

● Under Gareth Southgate, England have faced 42 different nations and beaten 39 of them. The only three he’s faced but not won against (excluding penalty shootout wins) are France (L2), Brazil (D1) and Colombia (D1).

● Harry Kane has scored in each of his last five home appearances for England, netting seven goals (five at Wembley, two at Old Trafford). The only two players in England’s history to score in six consecutive appearances on English soil are Steve Bloomer (seven in a row, 1895-99, at seven different stadiums) and Wayne Rooney (seven, 2014-16, six at Wembley, one at the Stadium of Light).
07 Feb 2013 5:11

From the archive: England 2-1 Brazil


See the best of the action from our last meeting at Wembley back in 2013

Head to head


The Three Lions have played Brazil at men's senior level on 26 occasions, registering four wins and drawing and losing eleven times. The first meeting came in May 1956 when the nations met in an international at Wembley which England won by 4-2 in front of a reported 97,000 fans with Tommy Taylor and Colin Grainger scoring a brace apiece.


Last three meetings v Brazil


England 0-0 Brazil, Men's International, 14 November 2017

The teams couldn't be separated on this occasion, as both teams began their preparation for the FIFA 2018 World Cup with a 0-0 draw.

Brazil 2-2 England, Men's International, 2 June 2013

In what was the opening game at the new-look Maracana Stadium, the two sides through up a thrilling game, with goals from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Wayne Rooney seemingly setting England up for a memorable win after Fred's penalty opened the scoring. A late equaliser from Paulinho meant it ended all square. 

England 2-1 Brazil, Men's International, 6 February 2013

In what was a celebratory game for the FA's 150th anniversary year, Brazil were on the wrong end of a 2-1 scoreline at Wembley thanks to goals from Wayne Rooney and Frank Lampard. The match also saw a memorable penalty save from Joe Hart to deny Ronaldinho an opening goal.

03 Jun 2013 5:53

From the archive: Brazil 2-2 England


Take a look back at England's trip to help unveil the new Maracana Stadium in Rio and a memorable game to boot

England Squad News

 
 
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Ticket Information

 

Tickets for this game are now sold out.
 
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How to watch or stream



This game will be shown live on Channel 4 in the UK.

Match Line Up

Jude Bellingham battles for possession with Joao Gomes in the first half
Jude Bellingham battles for possession with Joao Gomes in the first half
England suffered their first defeat in eleven games as Endrick struck late to hand Brazil a 1-0 win in an absorbing match at Wembley Stadium.

The 17 year old midfielder tapped in a rebound to write his name in Wembley history as the youngest goalscorer in a men's senior match with just ten minutes to go, after Jordan Pickford did well to deny Vinicius Junior’s initial effort.

In a game littered with near-misses, England created plenty of chances and went close through Phil Foden, Ollie Watkins and Ben Chilwell – but were unable to find the killer finish and were made to pay.

They next face Belgium on Tuesday and then two more friendlies in June, as they continue to countdown to EURO 2024.

This defeat came on the day Wembley celebrated the life of former manager Terry Venables, who died in November at the age of 80. And, in front of many of the EURO '96 squad, England made a fittingly fast start.
Determined to press high, they pinned Brazil back inside their own half for much of the first ten minutes and threatened an early goal when Conor Gallagher won a free-kick wide on the right that Foden bent narrowly past the far post.

Brazil arrived without a win in three matches but after surviving England’s early pressure, they quickly warmed to the task. Rodrygo fired the first warning shot when he was allowed to surge towards England’s box and struck a low effort that required Pickford to dive low to his left and save.

That injected a shot of confidence into the visitors and they nearly took the lead in the 13th minute when Lucas Paqueta slipped rapid winger Vinicius through on goal. The Real Madrid forward went round Pickford but his shot lacked pace and the recovering Kyle Walker scampered back to clear it off the line.

The Manchester City full-back hurt himself in the process and was soon replaced by Aston Villa’s Ezri Konsa for his full senior debut, with Harry Maguire taking over as captain.

England settled down after a nervy ten minutes and should have taken the lead when Anthony Gordon teed up Watkins inside the box, but he blazed over the bar from six yards while under heavy pressure.
 The starting line-up for England ahead of the kick-off at Wembley
The starting line-up for England ahead of the kick-off at Wembley
In an open game, chances continued to arrive at both ends. Chilwell should have done better when he had time to line up a half-volley following a corner, but he struck it into the ground and it bounced wide, while Paqueta smacked the post with a first-time shot from the edge of the box.

Brazil then missed another fine chance just before half-time, as Raphinha harried Maguire into a mistake, dribbled into the box and shot inches wide of Pickford’s far post.

Like in the first half, England started on the front foot after the break and debutant Gordon went close when Declan Rice picked him out at the back post from a free-kick and the Newcastle man forced Bento into a diving save.

However, both teams lacked the attacking thrust on show before the break, with defences comfortably on top – although Paqueta again went close with a bending first-time shot from the edge of the box that whistled inches past the top corner.

Gareth Southgate soon turned to his bench, bringing on the likes of Jarrod Bowen, Marcus Rashford and Kobbie Mainoo for his England debut.
Anthony Gordon was in lively form on his Three Lions debut
Anthony Gordon was in lively form on his Three Lions debut
While he hoped that would add some attacking impetus, it was Brazil who found the breakthrough in the 80th minute when a long ball over the top set Vinicius through on goal and, while Pickford did well to save the initial shot, the ball fell to Endrick to tap in.

There was a lengthy VAR check for offside but the goal was allowed to stand, handing England a first home defeat in two years.

England: 1. Jordan Pickford (Everton), 2. Kyle Walker (c) (Manchester City), 3. Ben Chilwell (Chelsea), 4. Declan Rice (Arsenal), 5. John Stones (Manchester City), 6. Harry Maguire (Manchester United), 7. Phil Foden (Manchester City), 8. Conor Gallagher (Chelsea), 9. Ollie Watkins (Aston Villa), 10. Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid), 11. Anthony Gordon (Newcastle United)

Substitutes: 12. Ezri Konsa (Aston Villa) for Walker 20’, 18. Jarrod Bowen (West Ham United) for Bellingham 67’, 16. Joe Gomez (Liverpool) for Chilwell 67’, 14. Lewis Dunk (Brighton & Hove Albion) for Maguire 67’, 21. Kobbie Mainoo (Manchester United) for Gallagher 75’, 19. Marcus Rashford (Manchester United) for Gallagher 75’

Substitutes not used: 13. Sam Johnstone (Crystal Palace), 15. Jarrad Branthwaite (Everton) 17. Ivan Toney (Brentford), 20. James Maddison (Tottenham Hotspur), 22. Aaron Ramsdale (Arsenal)

Bookings: Bellingham 14

Brazil: 1. Bento, 2. Danilo (c), 5. Bruno Guimaraes, 6. Wendell, 7. Vinicius Junior, 8. Lucas Paqueta, 10. Rodrygo, 11. Raphinha, 14. Fabricio Bruno, 15. Joao Gomes, 25. Lopes Beraldo

Substitutes: 19. Andreas Pereira for Paqueta 70’, 21. Endrick for Rodrygo 71’, 20. Savio for Raphinha 78’, 18. Douglas Luiz for Guimaraes 78’, 26. Pablo Maia for Vinicius 90’

Substitutes not used: 3. Murilo, 4. Bremer, 9. Richarlison, 12. Raphael, 13. Yan Couto, 16. Pepe, 17. Andre, 22.Galeno, 23. Leo Jardim, 24. Ayrton

Goals: Endrick 80’

Bookings: Paqueta 34

Match Line Up

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