Brazil are out of the Copa America, meaning an opportunity for international silverware missed for Wolves midfielder Joao Gomes.
Brazil were beaten on penalties by Uruguay in their quarter-final match at the Allegiant Stadium, in what is a hugely disappointing result for the nation.
They have won the Copa America nine times, and had been among the favourites to win this time around.
But Dorival Junior’s side came up way short in the US, and it’s Uruguay who have advanced to the last four, along with Colombia, Canada and Argentina.
Nahitan Nandez was sent off for Uruguay with 15 minutes of normal time to go, but Brazil couldn’t find a way through.
In the end, Uruguay won 4-2 on penalties, and will now face Colombia on Thursday.
Joao Gomes disappoints as Brazil crash out of Copa America against Uruguay
Despite having not really pulled up many trees at the Copa America, Joao Gomes was handed another start by Dorival Junior against Uruguay.
Gomes had been hoping for a better outing than against Paraguay in the last match.
The Pitbull drew criticism from a couple of outlets for the way he lacked consistency and made errors.
Unfortunately, Gomes again didn’t have his best outing against Uruguay, with Globo Esporte noting that he was simply too safe in possession.
He was typically decent out of possession, but as far as offering creativity went, Gomes was ineffective. Giving him a 6/10, they said: “In a game as close as this one, it was important for offering intensity and combativeness in the Brazilian midfield.
“With the ball, however, he did the simple thing, almost always opting for short passes. He was shown a yellow card for killing a counterattack.”
As per Sofascore, Gomes completed 22/29 passes (76% accuracy. None of those were ‘key’. That said, he did contest a whopping 19 duels in the game, with no player contesting more. He won nine of those duels, with only Rodrygo winning more.
Joao Gomes should aim to improve on the ball
Wolves fans have loved watching Gomes since he came to the club from Flamengo in January 2023.
His energy, tenacity and intensity in the engine room have made Wolves very competitive and his ability to win the ball back is well-documented at this point.
If Gomes is to reach the next level, he must focus on improving on the ball.
It can be a great thing to be able to keep the ball and recycle possession. But every now and then, there is a need for more incision.
We have not seen Gomes breaking the lines much with his passing or seeking to play through balls for the attackers at Molineux.
The top defensive midfielders in the world like Rodri and Frenkie de Jong are always looking for those line-breaking passes and if Gomes can add this kind of thing to his arsenal, then he will become a serious, serious player. Because he already has the defensive work down to a tee.