Ahead of the upcoming friendly against France, Brazilian star Vinicius Junior stressed that his country does not enter the 2026 World Cup as the most prominent candidate for the title, stressing that the focus is on restoring Brazil's historic place in football away from pressure and expectations.
Vinicius said in press statements that talking about Brazil being the "favorite" does not serve the team at this stage, adding: "Our goal is to return the team to its natural position, and we do not want to get into discussions about the nominations."
The Real Madrid player touched on that Neymar is still one of the most important players he considers a role model on and off the field, stressing his full confidence in coach Carlo Ancelotti's decisions, despite his exclusion of Neymar from the squad list.
The Brazilian national team is preparing to play a series of friendly matches against France, Panama and Croatia as part of the final stage of preparations for the World Cup, which will be held in the United States, Mexico and Canada, and the match between Brazil and France is scheduled to be held on Thursday at Gillette Stadium in the state of Massachusetts.