India, June 30 -- Brazil's progress into the last-16 of the World Cup was eventually secured by a stoppage-time winner from Gabriel Martinelli, but the decisive moment was less about the individual brilliance than a gradual dismantling of one of the most disciplined units of this World Cup. The 2-1 comeback was built on Carlo Ancelotti recognising that Japan were defending exactly the spaces Brazil were trying to attack before forcing the game into different directions.

It explains why for the entirety of the first half Japan looked so comfortable. Their compact defence block frustrated Brazil, Vinicius Junior being reduced to a peripheral figure and the front third looking short of ideas. They dominated possession, passed around the bal...