Vinícius Júnior rescues Brazil, but Morocco exposes deeper flaws

Vinícius Júnior rescued Brazil with a brilliant equaliser, but the 1-1 draw with Morocco at MetLife Stadium did little to quiet concerns about how Carlo Ancelotti’s side is built. In front of 80,663 fans in East Rutherford, New Jersey, Morocco struck first through Ismael Saibari in the 21st minute, and Vinícius answered in the 32nd to salvage a point in Brazil’s 2026 World Cup opener.

The result kept Brazil’s unbeaten record in World Cup openers intact after 92 years, yet the performance told a less comforting story. Brazil entered as five-time World Cup champions chasing their first title since 2002, but Morocco, ranked seventh in the world and coming in as African champions, matched them in a game that carried unusual weight: it was the only first-round meeting between two top-10 teams in the expanded 48-team tournament.

Vinícius was named FIFA’s Player of the Match, but his individual brilliance could not disguise Brazil’s uneven control or their muted attacking support. Endrick stayed on the bench as an unused substitute, and Raphinha was among the players unable to convert late chances. Morocco’s shape and discipline forced Brazil into a scrappier contest than expected, and the heavy pro-Brazil atmosphere never translated into sustained control from the Selecão.

Afterward, Vinícius did not soften the assessment. Through a translator, he said Brazil “started on a really bad note” and said the team needed to hold the ball better and move better. That criticism cut to the core of the night in New Jersey, where Brazil created moments but not dominance, and where Morocco repeatedly looked organised enough to make the favourite uncomfortable.

The match also placed two managerial debuts under immediate scrutiny. Carlo Ancelotti managed Brazil at a World Cup for the first time, and Mohamed Ouahbi did the same for Morocco. Ouahbi’s side left with more encouragement than regret, having tested Brazil’s structure from the opening exchanges and preserved Morocco’s own search for a first opening-game win at a World Cup.

For Brazil, the point was valuable. For the wider tournament, the warning was louder: Vinícius can decide a match in a flash, but against a well-drilled Morocco, one moment of genius was not enough to hide the balance problems underneath.