World Cup 2026: Struggling Selecao Hope to Break Slump Against Hapless La Roja

Chile vs Brazil

The ninth round of the World Cup 2026 CONMEBOL qualifiers will begin on Friday, with one of the headlines being Selecao’s match against Chile.

Both countries are powerhouses in South American football, producing players who have gone on and made a name for themselves on the world stage.

But even if prestige and icons are attached to their names, recent World Cup 2026 results have shown that things haven’t gone their way. As of writing, Brazil are fifth on the table and have lost four of their last five qualifying matches in the tournament—most notably against Argentina, Colombia and Uruguay.

They were also the victims of a shocking upset when Paraguay defeated them last month after Diego Gomez’s first-half strike proved to be the difference between the two nations.

The Chileans, on the other hand, have been downright atrocious. They have no wins in their last five matches, and along with a disappointing Copa America exit, Ricardo Gareca’s La Roja have butchered their qualifying results so far.

A much-needed win is a must for Chile in this one, with the country looking likely to get eliminated from World Cup contention.

 

Talking Points

Chile are in dire need of a win

La Roja’s last competitive win dates back to October 13 of last year, when, in the same competition, Chile defeated Peru 2-0.

It remains their only one in the World Cup qualifiers so far.

Since then, losses against Ecuador, Venezuela and Argentina have put Ricardo Gareca’s side in the bottom two.

Their horrid form was most evident in the 2-1 loss against Bolivia last month, where the Bolivians claimed a first competitive away win since 1993, ending a 31-year drought. It was also the first time that Bolivia had defeated Chile on their home soil.

And with La Roja’s next two matches coming against Brazil and Colombia, the country’s World Cup hopes are looking bleaker as each day passes.

 

Selecao’s best won’t feature

Just like plenty of the international matches so far, injuries have ruined players’ chances of representing their countries, with club football taking a toll on certain footballers.

And with Selecao’s recent plight, this injury bug only adds to more trouble on Dorival Junior’s side.

According to World Cup 2026 news, five key players were ruled out in the upcoming contests against Chile and Peru: Vinicius Junior, Alisson, Eder Militao, Gleison Bremer and Guilherme Arana.

The Real Madrid duo of Vinicius Junior and Eder Militao were both injured in their La Liga meeting with Villareal; Vini Jr. suffered a cervical injury and was taken off in the dying moments of the match, whilst Eder Militao’s left thigh was aggravated after appearing as a substitute in the same contest.

Meanwhile, Alisson exited Liverpool’s match with Crystal Palace last week after suffering yet another hamstring injury.

Juventus’ Gleison Bremer will have to undergo knee surgery after badly injuring his knee against Leipzig, whilst Atletico Mineiro’s Guilherme Arana has a muscle injury in his left adductor after featuring in his club’s Copa do Brasil match.

Can Dorival Junior steer Brazil out of their rut? Or will calls for him to be sacked echo loudly after the game in Santiago?

 

History

It has been a lopsided affair in Brazil and Chile’s head-to-head battle, with the five-time World Cup winners boasting 54 wins over their South American counterparts.

Chile only have eight wins to show for in the matchup, last winning against their Brazilian foes back in 2015.

Since then, Brazil have won four straight, scoring a total of nine goals whilst not conceding any.

The two sides have also drawn 13 times with each other.

 

Betting Tip

Regardless of their poor run, the Selecao (1.56) are backed by the SBOTOP World Cup 2026 odds to beat Chile (5.40), with a draw priced at 3.59.

Even if Dorival Junior isn’t exactly extracting his squad’s full potential, for my money, there’d be no doubts that their slump ends in Santiago.

Lest we forget, Brazil are still loaded.

Raphinha, Ederson, Rodrygo, Endrick, Lucas Paqueta, Gabriel Magalhaes and Savinho will all be available for the Chile matchup.

Bruno Guimaraes, Andre, Marquinhos, Danilo and Alex Telles have also made the cut.

With a team like Brazil’s, it’s only a matter of time before they find their shooting boots and respond to their critics the right way.

For an alternative bet, a Brazil Asian Handicap of -1.00 (2.11) is also one to look at, whilst bettors on Chile’s side will hope that the large odds stacked against them can work well in their pockets’ favours.

   

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