Brazil friendly: Spotlight on Vinicius jr as the star man returns to India

The two-month wait for the Samba Boys finally ended on Thursday evening when a jumbo Brazil contingent, under the decorated head coach Carlo Ancelotti, stepped into the city in a chartered flight from Australia where they played two friendlies against the Socceroos.

The third one for them in this FIFA window poses a lifetime opportunity for India, a nobody in the game’s pecking order in Asia, on Saturday (3 October).

A lacklusture World Cup campaign, where the five-time world champions exited in the last 16 stage, has hastened the international retirement of Neymar – their highest scorer in international football - and Casemiro. However, the squad is still heavy on starpower with the likes of Marquinhos or prodigious Endrick though the spotlight will be on Vinicius jr, the Real Madrid star, for which this is a second visit to India.

 It often goes under the radar that creative winger – who was Brazil’s go-to person in the 2026 World Cup for creating opportunities as well as scoring – first gained international attention as a 16-year-old when he represented Brazil at the inaugural BRICS U-17 Football Cup held in Goa.

Then a prospect in Flamengo’s youth academy, he finished as the tournament’s topscorer with four goals—including an 82nd-minute strike in Brazil’s 3-1 victory over host nation India as Brazil lifted the trophy.

Less than a year after his bow in Goa, Real Madrid secured his transfer for 46 million euros. The Spanish giants subsequently barred him from participating in the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup in India due to his immediate integration into the senior set-up.

While the humongous expenditure incurred for inviting Brazil has invited it’s share of critics, it’s an occasion which is certain to grab the eyeballs of the global football audience. ‘’This is such a football match that every player wants to play, and I think playing against Brazil for India is historic,’’ remarked Kalyan Choubey, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) president.

Meanwhile, the AIFF announced the names of two of India’s much adored football figures to be Goodwill Ambassadors for the big match who will carry the ball onto the pitch. IM Vijayan, the enigmatic striker of the Nineties and former India captain and José Ramirez Barreto, the Brazilian who regaled Kolkata fans in Mohun Bagan shirt for more than a decade, will be the two icons in a gesture which has come to stay in FIFA tournaments as well as marquee club events.

Vijayan, now 57 and a member of the AIFF technical committee, showed remarkable longevity as he starred for Kerala Police, Mohun Bagan, now defunct JCT Mills Phagwara, FC Kochin, East Bengal FC and Churchill Brothers before he called time on his club career in 2006. A former India captain between 2000 and 2004, Vijayan had attracted interest from professional clubs in Malaysia and Thailand.

Barreto, meanwhile, began his professional career in Gremio and appeared for Mohun Bagan for a staggering 12 years in two stints. Now settled in Kolkata, he is the coach of Howrah Hogghly Warriors.

The Vivekananda Yuva Bharati Krirangan, which is being spruced up for the two friendlies against Brazil and Uruguay, was buzzing with excitement on Thursday afternoon as the Celeste – as Uruguay is known – got down to business. The two-time world champions has had a forgettable World Cup outing in the US and are now looking to rebuild for 2028 Copa America under Diego Forlan, the Golden Ball winner of 2010 World Cup.