Newcastle United midfielder Bruno Guimaraes kicked off his Copa America campaign with Brazil on Monday night.
While Newcastle United fans were celebrating the fact that Bruno Guimaraes’ £100million release clause has now expired, the 26-year-old was focussed on his international commitments.
Bruno was named in the Brazil starting XI on Monday night, as they played their first game of the Copa America against Costa Rica.
Brazil draw 0-0 with Costa Rica
As always, Brazil are one of the favourites to win the entire competition, and were expected to enjoy a fast start against a nation that are ranked 52nd in the world.
However, it ended in disappointment for Brazil, who were held to a 0-0 draw by Costa Rica.
It was a star-studded XI that included Champions League winners Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo, while Bruno played the full 90 minutes in the middle of the park alongside his close friend Lucas Paqueta.
But they were unable to breach the Costa Rica defence, managing just three shots on target out of 19.
Brazil were dominant at SoFi Stadium, but had to settle for a point.
Verdict on Newcastle United star Bruno Guimaraes’ performance for Brazil
Bruno played the full game for Brazil, and received mixed reviews for his performance in Inglewood, California.
Globo Esporte gave him a rating of 6.0 out of 10, admitting that he was not at his best against Costa Rica.
They wrote: “Although he made good passes and helped close spaces, he was below what he could perform. At 45 of the second half, he had a great chance with a shot from the edge of the area, but felt it over the top. Minutes before he had made a great shot for Savinho, but the attacker didn’t shoot.”
Goal were slightly more positive about Bruno’s display, giving him 7/10.
On Bruno, they wrote: “Stood out in terms of controlling the match. An absolute unit in the midfield who ran the tempo.”
Tough Copa America start for Miguel Almiron too
Bruno and Brazil failed to start the Copa America with a win, and the same goes for Miguel Almiron and Paraguay.
Miggy is in the same group as Bruno, and they are set to face each other on Friday night/Saturday morning.
Both nations will be desperate to impress, with Paraguay also not getting the desired start to their Copa America campaign.
They were beaten 2-1 by Colombia, with Jefferson Lerma’s goal proving to be the winner. Given the talent that Colombia have, it was always going to be a tough start for Paraguay, and it proved to be exactly that.
Almiron started in attack for his country, but was unable to influence proceedings. He was taken off in the 59th minute to be replaced by Ramon Sosa.
Neither of Newcastle United’s South American stars kicked off their Copa America campaign with a win, and now they are preparing to go head-to-head at Allegiant Stadium in Paradise, Nevada.
The post Brazilian media deliver interesting verdict on Bruno Guimaraes after his first appearance at Copa America last night appeared first on Geordie Boot Boys.