Brazil were favored to win the 2022 World Cup in Qatar after their 4-1 thrashing of South Korea. Neymar was performing well for Paris Saint-Germain, and the Selecao had a talented roster overall, but they lost all three of their group games when their star player was injured in the first.
However, their quarterfinals opponents, Croatia, led by goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic, took the Brazilians to penalties before ultimately beating them in the shootout. Thus, since their 2002 victory, Brazil have reached no farther than the quarterfinals of the World Cup, losing each time they faced top European competition.
In the wake of the devastating elimination from the Qatar World Cup, a new manager is being sought. Brazil's loss on penalties to Croatia prompted Tite to quit rather than wait to be fired by the Brazilian Football Federation.
Why do the best European coaches pass up the Brazil national team job?
A number of well-known coaches have subsequently been mentioned as possible candidates to lead Brazil's national team. Names like Pep Guardiola, Zinedine Zidane, Carlo Ancelotti, Thomas Tuchel, and Rafael Benitez have been bandied around as possible possibilities for the position.
The French daily L'Equipe recently stated that France and Real Madrid legend Zinedine Zidane might be a good choice to replace Tite. However, the reports adds that the Frenchman has no interest in managing any national team other than France, which seems improbable given that Didier Deschamps has just renewed his contract with Les Blues until 2026.
Even Carlo Ancelotti, manager of Real Madrid, has also flatly dismissed reports that he is being considered to lead Brazil: “I don't know, I was never approached by them, and the Brazil Federation never called me. I just want to stay at Real Madrid… I will never ask Real Madrid to let me leave this club”.
In addition, The Mirror claim that the iconic Brazilian striker Ronaldo called Pep Guardiola's agent to gauge the latter's enthusiasm for taking over for the 61-year-old Tite. However, the Manchester City boss has rejected the offer in favor of staying at Etihad Stadium, reportedly adding that he still had 'unfinished business' in England after failing to win the UEFA Champions League with the Citizens.
The Green-Yellow national team has always been led by a Brazilian coach since that position has been considered sacred. Since the Argentine Filpo Nunez left in 1965, Brazil have not had a foreign manager. However, three non-Brazilians—Nunez (from Argentina), Joreca (from Portugal), and Ramón Platero (from Uruguay)—have served as coaches for the Brazil national team.
