Brazil are among the final four teams at the U-17 Women's World Cup in Morocco. On Sunday (1), the Amarelinha showed their fighting spirit, coming from behind to beat China 2–1, securing a semifinal spot and matching their best-ever performance in the competition. The achievement repeats their 2025 run, when, also under coach Rilany Silva, Brazil reached the semifinals and finished fourth.
After another match defined by resilience, the coach highlighted the squad's mental strength as one of the team's key assets. For Rilany, the ability to respond to adversity is not just a quality the players possess, but part of the identity Brazil have built throughout the competition.
"This group's mentality isn't something they have or display. They embody it. Being on a stage this big is not enough. You can't just be a team that plays pretty football and keeps possession. You need mental strength, because you're going to face difficult moments during the game. Regardless of how your opponents set out to play or how you approach it yourselves, you're going to struggle at times in that match," she said.
The coach also analyzed the team's tactical response to China's strategy. According to Rilany, the coaching staff had expected opponents who would sit deep, looking to win the ball back and exploit the spaces Brazil left when pushing forward.
Faced with that scenario, Brazil had to adapt their buildup play, making greater use of the flanks to avoid losing possession in central areas and reduce the threat of counterattacks.
"We knew our decision-making would have to be very sound and rational because, if we forced play through the middle, which is what we do most often because of our setup, we could leave ourselves exposed on the counter. We understood that China would drop into a low block and that we wouldn't be able to play through the middle. So we chose to move some key players into wider positions and play more down the flanks to avoid facing so many counterattacks," she explained.
Proud of the team's journey so far, the coach stressed that Brazil have had to deal with different challenges across their five World Cup matches. In her view, the team's proactive style naturally carries risks, but their ability to respond and regain control of matches has been crucial to their campaign.
"When you're under pressure, having a strong mentality puts you closer to regaining control of the game. I think that's what they've done throughout these five matches, and I'm very proud of this group," she concluded.
Chasing a place in the final and their first-ever title, Brazil face Nigeria in the semifinals next Wednesday (4) at 12 p.m. Brasília time. On the other side of the bracket, Japan and North Korea will compete for the other place in the final.
This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.
