Ancelotti challenges…Japanese player’s shocking statement that has sparked outrage in Brazil

The player of the Japanese national team, Kento Shiugai, raised a wave of anger in the Brazilian camp, a few hours before the match of the 32nd round between the two teams.

The Japanese attacker said: “Brazil is no longer what it was. Brazil used to be strong, but today? I haven’t been hearing much about it lately. I have the impression that France is strong and so is Argentina. They no longer have the Neymar of yesteryear. I think we are in a good position today.”

According to the site “Miss MercatoThe announcement sparked a backlash in the Brazilian media, especially in the Seleção camp, where Marquinhos, in particular, was visibly upset by the announcement.

“It’s enough, it’s good that they keep talking to motivate our team. Maybe it was a little arrogant on their part. Brazil is still a great team. We just have to show our strength and quality tomorrow.” The Paris Saint-Germain centre-back, who believes these statements should serve as a major motivator for the Seleção, added: “We leave such talk to our competitors, let them talk a lot to motivate us. With great humility, we continue to work hard to achieve our goal.”

For his part, Carlo Ancelotti preferred to downplay the situation in his press conference.

When asked about Shiuga’s statements, the coach refused to provoke controversy, saying: “We will not talk about that. We will focus on the strengths of the match and the opponent. We will prepare well to create problems in Japan and avoid them. We will not touch on the psychological aspect.”

It was a way of reminding everyone that Brazil were looking to get back on the pitch against the Samurai, who had previously beaten the Seleção in a friendly last year.