Willian got his second start for Brazil at the World Cup yesterday, but it didn’t go to plan.
After a series of World Cup warmups where he was Brazil’s most impressive player, and a first game where he put in a good showing, everything was set up nicely for the winger in yesterday’s game against Costa Rice.
But a sluggish first half from the South American side, and from Willian in particular, saw him hauled off at half time by manager Tite.
Willian hauled off at half time. He’s now sitting in the changing room fuming, photoshopping 5 World Cups over a picture of Tite.
— Will Faulks (@willfaulks) June 22, 2018
He was replaced by Douglas Costa, who did a little better in the second period. It still took until the dying moments for Brazil to grab their winner, followed by an ill-deserved second.
Willian still brings a lot to this team, and there’s no guarantee he will be dropped for the final group game against Serbia. But given the manager is likely to rotate his team, if he wants to be assured of playing in the knockout, he’d better hope that Costa doesn’t play too well in his absence.
