Preview: Seleção poised to stretch winning streak to five games
Luiz Felipe Scolari’s men take on Honduras in Miami this Saturday as they continue making preparations for the first ever FIFA World Cup to be held in their country in 64 years.
The Samba giants are on a good run having won all of their last four matches. The 2002 World Cup winners have revelled under the second coming of coach Luiz Felipe Scolari and upon his arrival in November last year, Brazil have just lost twice in the 17 matches they have played.
Brazil will however now have to play the game without the presence of Atletico Madrid striker Diego Costa who chose to switch his allegiances a few weeks back to play for Spain. The striker’s decision resulted in Milan striker Robinho brought back from the international wilderness and the former Real Madrid man could be in line for his first game in yellow and blue in over 15 months.
Despite Costa choosing not to play for the country of his birth, Scolari has a wide array of attacking options to choose from including Neymar and Hulk who have shown a lot of promise since the regular European season began.
A number of other players would be looking to make full use of international friendlies in order to claim a spot in the World Cup including Paris Saint-Germain defender Maxwell who is set to fill in as the left-back in place of Real Madrid man Marcelo who is set to miss this game due to a knee injury. Maxwell should be looking to use this game as a teaser to his manager as to what he could bring to the squad next year.
Having lost just once in their last five meetings with the Central American side, Brazil would be considered favourites for this tie. However, the Selecao should be wary of the side that beat Mexico to third place in the CONCACAF automatic qualification standings. Moreover, Luis Fernando Suarez’s side have lost just three times in their last 10 games which means that they will make life tough for the Samba giants in Miami.
In Jerry Bengtson and Carlos Costly, they have two talented strikers who scored a combined 16 goals during the qualification process. However, the talented duo will face difficulty in finding the net against a side that is currently boasting some of the most talented defenders in the world.
Despite a gulf in talent and class between the two sides, Honduras should not be taken lightly. The team has qualified for the World Cup for the second straight time and are a tough unit to break down, thanks to the team spirit their manager has instilled in the squad.
However, expecting Brazil not to prepare themselves for Saturday’s game is never going to happen. Regardless of the distractions, few teams have the ability to hold their own against Brazil for the entire game which means that things might be complicated for the Central Americans.
Where to watch the match – live stream, start time, TV channels, Live scores
Watch Honduras vs Brazil live on Saturday, November 16, 2013:
In Canada at 19:30 ET on beIN Sport Play Canada
In USA at 19:30 ET on beIN Sport USA, beIN Sport Play, beIN Sport en Español
On Sunday, November 17, 2013:
In UK at 00:30 BST on BT Sport 2
Fans based in Brazil can catch the action live on SporTV and Globo.
For complete details of match listings and live scores, visit the Honduras vs Brazil match page.
