Casemiro rose at the back post to nod home a second-half equaliser for Brazil, silencing the fans who had written him off after a dismal first half against Japan. The Manchester United midfielder, who is set to join Inter Miami as a free agent, cancelled out Kaishu Sano's clinical opener on 29 minutes with a header from Gabriel Magalhaes's floated diagonal pass. The goal came after a spell of relentless Brazilian pressure that had already seen Vinícius Júnior denied by the post and Casemiro's own header cleared off the line by Takehiro Tomiyasu.
Brazil had trailed since Sano's wonderful first-half run and strike at the Houston Stadium in Texas. Casemiro, 34, struggled to cope with Japan's high press and accidentally wiped out Brazil team-mate Lucas Paqueta as they contested the ball. ITV commentator Lee Dixon issued a scathing assessment, saying Casemiro showed "no legs" and looked "a shadow of his former self". Fans took to social media urging Brazil manager Carlo Ancelotti to hook the midfielder at half-time. One supporter tweeted: "Sad to see what's happening with Casemiro. Looks an absolute shell of his former self." Another wrote: "DON'T LET CASEMIRO PLAY IN THE SECOND HALF."
“Casemiro equalises with a header after being heavily criticised for his first-half performance against Japan.”
Ancelotti kept Casemiro on, and his faith was rewarded in the 56th minute. The equaliser came after Japan had threatened again — Daizen Maeda raced forward on the counter, only for Danilo to bring him down and earn a yellow card. Brazil then pushed harder, with Bruno Guimarães forcing a save from Zion Suzuki and Vinícius Jr weaving through the Japanese defence before his shot clipped the goalkeeper's glove and came back off the post.
Japan, unbeaten at the finals, had stunned Brazil 3-2 in a friendly last October, coming from two goals down. The Selecao had started their campaign with a 1-1 draw against Morocco before storming to successive 3-0 wins over Haiti and Scotland to top Group C. Ancelotti made a change at 66 minutes, replacing Matheus Cunha with Gabriel Martinelli, while Japan introduced Yukinari Sugawara and Ayumu Suzuki for Keito Nakamura and Ritsu Doan. The match remained 1-1 as both sides sought a winner in the knockout round.