Brazil go into their Group C meeting with Haiti needing a response after dropping two points in a 1-1 draw with Morocco. Brazil are third in the group with 1 point, and Carlo Ancelotti is expected to make changes as he tries to turn that opening draw into a first World Cup win.

How Ancelotti may reshape Brazil

Neymar was briefly involved in training on Wednesday for the first time at this World Cup, but he is still primarily training alone, so his status remains uncertain. Matheus Cunha is the Manchester United forward expected to come into the lineup in place of Brentford’s Igor Thiago.

There is also scope for changes in defence and midfield. Danilo, Marquinhos and Gabriel Magalhães are all part of the conversation, while Casemiro’s 2026 World Cup rating of 6.23 across 1 appearance and 46 minutes points to why the midfield balance may be adjusted. Brazil do not need a perfect performance here, they need a win, and the opener against Morocco left no real room to play cautiously.

Haiti are not coming in empty-handed. They lost 1-0 to Scotland in their opener, with John McGinn’s first-half goal deciding it, and one preview called them competitive enough to make Brazil work. Jamie Spencer summed up the size of the task: "Things ought to be different against a Haiti team beaten by Scotland—albeit only narrowly—and ranked outside the world’s top 80. But nothing at the World Cup is ever a given."

Why Haiti can still make this awkward

That remains the useful part of this fixture from Haiti’s point of view. They are bottom of Group C with 0 points, 0 goals for and 1 against after one match, but the Scotland game suggested they can stay organised for long stretches. Brazil should still have the stronger squad, but Ancelotti’s first concern is less about control and more about finding a team that looks sharper than it did against Morocco.

If Brazil do beat Haiti, the pressure eases before the final group match against Scotland. If they do not, the margin for error in Group C tightens fast, and the draw with Morocco will look even more expensive.

Compiled by the ClutchBrief Desk with AI assistance, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →