Australia and Brazil played out a 1-1 draw in an entertaining international friendly which saw Carlo Ancelotti testing more players for the national team.
The Socceroos looked set to secure a memorable victory after taking the lead in the second half, but the Samba boys scored a late equaliser to leave with a draw.
The match started with both teams showing plenty of energy from the opening minutes. The Samba boys had some of the more familiar attacking names on the pitch.
The visitors had attackers like Vinicius Junior, Raphinha and Endrick, but Australia were not intimidated by the five-time world champions quality.
The first half ended without a goal as both sides struggled to create a clear opening. The home side defended well and tried to make use of their opportunities on the counter.
Brazil did controlled much of the possession without finding a way through the home team’s defence which was well organized.
The visitors thought they had taken the lead shortly after the break, but the goal was ruled out after a foul. Australia survived the scare and gradually became more confident as the second half continued.
The breakthrough finally came in the 68th minute when Nestory Irankunda put Australia ahead 1-0 in what looked as a shocker to their opponent.
The young forward produced a superb free-kick that flew into the top corner, giving goalkeeper Hugo Souza little chance of making any save.
The Socceroos gave their supporters plenty to celebrate and putting themselves in position to claim a famous victory over Brazil, while the game was going on.
The visitors, however, continued to push forward and increased the pressure as the final minutes approached. Carlo Ancelotti made attacking changes in an attempt to find a way back into the game.
Rayan was introduced in the 76th minute for Estevao, and the substitute eventually became the hero for his side. The home side defended their narrow lead for most of the remaining minutes, but their opponent refused to give up.
Deep into stoppage time, the visitors finally found the equaliser. Rayan scored in the 95th minute with a header to make it 1-1 with nothing more left to play between both teams.
Raphinha provided the assist for the goal, with the late effort breaking Australia’s resistance and saving Brazil from defeat as the match ended 1-1 after 90 minutes.
The equaliser was a major disappointment for Australia, who had been just minutes away from recording a famous victory.
However, the Socceroos can still take plenty of positives from their performance against one of the biggest teams in world football. Rayan’s late goal ensured the Brazilian team avoided defeat and showed the value of their attacking changes.
The result also gave their squad another opportunity to assess younger players as they continue preparing for the next stage of international competition.
Australia’s goal was scored by Nestory Irankunda in the 68th minute directly from a free-kick, while Rayan equalised for Brazil in the 95th minute with an assist from Raphinha. The final result was Australia 1-1 Brazil.
