'We don't have Pele or Ronaldo!' - Carlo Ancelotti admits Brazil lack stars heading into World Cup amid Neymar injury fears as coach prioritises team effort

Collective responsibility over individual icons

Brazil national team coach Ancelotti has played down the idea that his current roster features a definitive "star" player in the mould of the country's greatest legends. Speaking ahead of a friendly against Panama at the Maracana, the former Real Madrid boss emphasised that the path to World Cup success must be built on a shared workload rather than individual brilliance.

"The more experienced player has to have more responsibility, the younger player has to have less pressure. We all have a lot of responsibility and pressure. And what should we do? Share it. It can't be individual; we have to share the pressure so that it decreases a little," Ancelotti told reporters during a press conference. "Sometimes, we talk a lot about how Brazil doesn't have a star. It might be true, we don't have Pele, Romario and Ronaldo, but we can have a shared responsibility."

He added: "We've worked a lot on defense. We're going to work a lot on that. I don't want to take away the creativity of the attacking players. They have a lot of quality, I don't want to create confusion. Defensively, it's a daily piece of information until the last game of the World Cup. Our work is focused on that. The defenders, full-backs, midfielders, they all have a very important role."

The Neymar fitness conundrum

Despite Ancelotti's call for a group-centric approach, the fitness of Neymar remains the dominant talking point surrounding the Selecao camp. The pressure is immense on Brazil, as they seek to recapture their former glory after being eliminated in the quarter-finals of the last two World Cups, with their last global triumph dating back to 2002. The former Santos forward, who remains the nation's all-time record goalscorer, is currently battling a grade two calf injury and has been unable to participate in full training sessions with the ball.

The injury has sparked a wave of speculation regarding his readiness for the World Cup opener in New Jersey on June 13. While Ancelotti had previously stated he would only take players who were 100 per cent fit, he has made a notable exception for his talismanic number 10, despite the player's ongoing rehabilitation process and fitness updates coming out of Santos.

Ancelotti clarifies selection criteria

Addressing his decision to include Neymar despite his previous hardline stance on fitness, Ancelotti admitted there was some nuance to his earlier comments. The Italian is banking on the immense experience of the veteran forward, who has earned 128 caps for Brazil and scored 79 goals. Neymar’s pedigree includes 13 World Cup appearances across the 2014, 2018 and 2022 editions, where he netted eight times. Ancelotti remains confident that he will find his rhythm in time for the tournament's most critical stages, even if he is currently sidelined during the preparation phase.

"I spoke about everyone being 100% physically in March, but I perhaps didn't explain very well that I could call up a player who wasn't 100% at the time, but who could be 100% at the World Cup. We lost Militao, Rodrygo and Estevao, but Neymar will be 100%," the manager explained to the press.

Deflecting pressure with Italian wit

When pushed on whether he regretted naming Neymar in the 26-man squad given the injury risks, Ancelotti resorted to a classic Italian proverb to dismiss the hypothetical scenario. He remains firm in his selection, especially with Brazil set to face Morocco, Scotland, and Haiti in Group C. The Italian tactician insisted that the superstar was always going to be part of his plans once the final list was submitted at the museum.

"You know what they say in Italy? That if my grandmother had wheels, she would be a car. When I arrived at the museum [to announce the squad], Neymar was among the 26," Ancelotti joked.