Dani Alves is set to become Brazil’s oldest World Cup captain when he takes to the field today against Cameroon. Brazil has already qualified for the last 16 and will finish first in Group G if they avoid a loss.
After recovering from a knee injury, the former Barcelona defender will now play in his third World Cup. Dani Alves said, “For me, it represents the fact that I can wear the Brazil jersey. It makes me very proud to be here.” He added, “It’s been 16 years with the national squad and I’ve tried to do my very best. Life, I think, always rewards the people who love what they do, who truly do their best in the mission.”
Cameroon, which battled back from two goals down to tie Serbia at 3-3 in their previous encounter, must win and hope Switzerland fails to beat Serbia in order to advance. They will be eliminated from the World Cup group stage if they lose or draw in their sixth consecutive campaign, having last reached the knockout rounds in 1990. In their previous seven World Cup games, they have never won their last group stage game (Draw 2, Lose 5).
Meanwhile, Brazil has won both previous World Cup games against Cameroon, 3-0 in 1994 and 4-1 in 2014. They have also won all seven FIFA World Cup games against African teams, scoring 20 goals and allowing only two. Brazil has failed to face a single shot on target in their first two games at the 2022 World Cup, becoming the first side since France in 1998 to do so.