Brazil 4-0 Peru: Brazil takes a step closer to World Cup qualification

Five-time FIFA World Cup champions Brazil enhanced their prospects of maintaining their unparalleled record as the only nation to have participated in every tournament since 1930 with a decisive 4-0 triumph over Peru.

Having secured victories in five consecutive matches against Peru across all competitions, Brazil had kept their opponents scoreless in the previous four encounters. However, in the 12th minute, it appeared that Brazil had conceded a goal.

Fortunately for the hosts, the officials intervened, correctly ruling that Edison Flores had been offside before he managed to slot the ball past goalkeeper Ederson.

In response, Raphinha, who has netted six goals in his last nine appearances for the Selecao, made a significant impact by striking the crossbar with a powerful shot from inside the penalty area as the match neared the half-hour mark.

Nonetheless, Raphinha successfully converted a penalty in the 38th minute, putting Dorival Junior’s team ahead. The penalty was awarded after Carlos Zambrano's foul on Igor Jesus and Luis Advincula in the box, allowing Raphinha to send Pedro Gallese the wrong way and secure a lead for Brazil at halftime.

Following a narrow victory over Chile that had temporarily alleviated the scrutiny on manager Dorival Junior, Raphinha further eased the pressure by replicating the opening goal in the 54th minute. Once again, he found the net from 12 yards after Zambrano committed another foul, this time on Manchester City forward Savinho.

Substitute Andreas Pereira capped off the scoring for Brazil in the 71st minute with a spectacular overhead kick that soared past Gallese.

Peru's disappointing evening continued just three minutes later, as fellow second-half substitute Luiz Henrique, who had previously secured a victory against Chile, found the net once more with an unerring finish, aided by some egregious defending from the Blanquirroja backline.

Brazil, displaying confidence on the field, concluded the current cycle of 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifying matches with a four-point lead over the final automatic qualification spot.

In contrast, with only Chile positioned below Peru in the CONMEBOL standings, the solitary seventh-place inter-confederation playoff position now appears to be the best opportunity for Jorge Fossati's team to return to the World Cup after their absence in 2022.

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