This past Monday, Brazils womens team started off their World Cup campaign with an assertive and electrifying 4-0 win against Panama. Having been knocked out of the previous two World Cups in the last 16, Brazil made their intentions clear in this opening match, with the side having piled on relentless waves of attacking pressure in their first game. Although the side were against tournament newcomers in Panama, other tournament-established sides have struggled against sides with less tournament pedigree.
What was, perhaps, the most exciting aspect of the game was how Pia Sundhage, the manager, deployed some of her players out of their regular positions. For Kansas City Current, Debinha predominantly plays on the left-hand side but does have a license to roam into central positions. However, she often starts in the frontline for Brazil.
Meanwhile, Kerolin plays for North Carolina Courage as a winger and a forward but has consistently started in the midfield for Brazil, and Ary Borges has been deployed in the midfield for several of Brazils games before the tournament as well as her club side Racing Louisville. However, in their game against Panama, she started as the sides right winger.
This tactical analysis will first examine how these players are utilised by their club sides in the NWSL and which aspects of their respective games have allowed Sundhage to use them in alternative ways for the national side.
Debinha the dynamo
As stated previously, for her club side, Debinha is deployed mainly on the left-hand side of the pitch but does have the licences to roam into central areas and may occasionally switch to the right-hand side for periods of a game. This can be seen in her heatmap image below for the 2023 season of the NWSL.
Rather than hug the touchline, Debinha is more active in the inner channels and occasionally drops as deep as her own half. However, she is still able to be involved within the opposition box.
In KC Currents game against the Chicago Red Stars, these aspects of Debinhas positioning and where she tries to receive the ball could be seen. In the image below, Debinha can be seen in a regular position as a midfielder. In this instance, the Brazillian drops from a central position towards the wide areas and looks to provide a passing option for the full-back. However, after reading the body language of her teammate, Debinha begins to make a run forward into the space ahead.
