ORLANDO, Fla. -- With one point in Group B, Brazil will look to move up in the Copa America Centenario standings when they take on Haiti on Wednesday night at Camping World Stadium.
Coming off a controversial draw against Ecuador in which a would-be goal from Ecuador's Miller Bolanos that was spilled by Brazil goalkeeper Alisson to the back of the net was waved off, defender Marquinhos believes there were many positives from the match, despite the outcome.
“There were many good things that came from the game versus Ecuador,” said the 22-year-old Paris Saint-German man. “We implemented a lot of the tactics there were given to us by [head coach] Dunga.”
For Brazil, one of the main issues that must be addressed is the lack of offensive firepower. The Seleção were able to have great buildup versus Ecuador, and were able to impose their Brazilian style of play from the back, but Ecuador’s hard-nosed defense made it a problem for Brazil in the attacking third.
“We had good ball possession versus Ecuador,” said Marquinhos. “Ecuador’s controlled defense gave us problems in our counter-attacks. We had a few goal scoring opportunities that were wasted, we can’t let that happen with Haiti.”
Following a 1-0 loss to Peru in Seattle, Haiti's Copa America path became much more difficult as they now have to face Brazil. Nevertheless for Brazil, despite expectations for a win versus the much weaker Haiti, Marquinhos understands soccer is mysterious and you never know what can happen in a match.
“We need to have our feet on the ground [versus Haiti],” explained the right back. “We need to respect our opponent and know that nothing is given to us just because we are the Seleção. We need to perform and we need to earn all the points we get.”
Against Peru, Haiti had some great opportunities, most notably in the 28th minute when Peru defender Alberto Rodriguez broke up a one-two with his arm at the top of the box, but Mechack Jerome's free kick was over the bar. And then again in the 94th minute when, substitute forward Kervens Belfort had an open chance off a free kick, but sent his header just wide of goal.
“There are no such things as an ‘easy game’ in the Copa America,” continued Marquinhos. “We are focused on getting a positive result versus a Haiti team that played very well versus Peru.”
