Arsenal international set for rare start for Brazil vs Paraguay

Gabriel Martinelli is set to start for Brazil against Paraguay on Tuesday night, his first start under new head coach Carlo Ancelotti.

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Brazilian outlet Globo Esporte report that Carlo Ancelotti is set to start Gabriel Martinelli in Brazil’s next game against Paraguay, hoping to give the team more attacking flexibility than they had in last week’s draw with Ecuador.

Martinelli came off the bench in the Ecuador game, but this would be his first start under the new Brazil boss.

GE report that Martinelli will start in a front four alongside Vinicius Jr., Raphinha, and Matheus Cunha. It remains to be seen which position each player occupies.

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Despite making 17 appearances for the Brazil senior national team, Martinelli has only made four starts so far, and the most recent of those was more than a year ago.

The 23-year-old has generally done well when selected from the start, scoring in two of those four games including that last start against Mexico.

But Brazil have a lot of talented players in forward areas, and it’s hard to hold down a spot.

Photo by Robyn Beck / AFP

Martinelli will want to make the most of this opportunity in a competitive fixture, with Brazil still not mathematically guaranteed World Cup qualification.

With three games remaining, it’s still technically possible for Brazil to be eliminated from contention completely. And it’s still very possible for Brazil to drop into the play-off place, only sitting four points clear of seventh-place Venezuela with three games remaining.

A win against Paraguay would make the former scenario impossible and the latter very unlikely. Qualification would be all but assured.

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