Brazil 2-0 Ecuador: 5 talking points as Richarlison and Neymar continue Selecao's perfect start | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers

#3 Neymar's penalty drama

Neymar missed his first attempt from the spot but made amends.

With the game finely poised at 1-0 and Brazil struggling to break down Ecuador, Neymar had the chance to double their advantage from the spot when Gabriel Jesus was brought down inside the area.

Neymar's tame effort was stopped by Dominguez. But in a bizarre turn of circumstances, the referee asked the PSG star to retake the penalty, as the Ecuador goalkeeper was off his line. The Selecao no. 10 made no mistake this time, sending Dominguez the wrong way with a nonchalant chip.

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#4 Militao is becoming a force to be reckoned with in Brazil's defence

Militao impressed with Brazil

Militao has impressed with Real Madrid. But he is now doing so for Brazil as well. He was superb against Ecuador, looking like a leader in the defence and leading by example.

Whenever the Tricolors attempted to break forward on the counter, Militao showed excellent positional awareness to nip the attack in the bud and also laid a couple of tidy passes too.

Militao worked well alongside Marquinhos and ran a taut ship. While most of the action transpired at the other end of the pitch, Militao's performance went under the radar, but he was Brazil's real Man of the Match.

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#5 Gabriel Barbosa fluffs his lines

Gabigol was disappointing for Brazil in attack.

Starting ahead of both Gabriel Jesus and Roberto Firmino, Gabriel Barbosa was given a chance to impress and stake a claim for the striker's role. But the Flamengo star failed to do so, missing some good chances to score.

In the 72nd minute, Gabigol went one-on-one with Dominguez but couldn't find a way past him. He also glanced a header wide off the post with the goalkeeper well off his line after having had a goal disallowed for offside in the first half.

Barbosa endured a forgettable outing on the night and will look for better returns in his next outing.

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