"Hope he gets injured", "Goodbye, World Cup" - Brazil fans lose their minds as 'underwhelming' attacker start against South Korea

Brazil fans were not happy to see Raphinha start for the team for the 2022 FIFA World Cup Round of 16 clash against South Korea on Monday, December 5.

Tite's side have been handed a massive boost as their talisman Neymar is back in the side for the game. The Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) attacker missed the last two games after suffering an ankle injury against Serbia in their opening game.

Raphinha starts tonight alongside him, Vinicius Jr. and Richarlison in attack for Selecao. Fans, however, opined that the Barcelona attacker has been rather underwhelming during the tournament. Some were also saddened to see Gabriel Martinelli not in the starting lineup.

Here are some of the best reactions across Twitter after Brazil coach Tite named his starting XI for the FIFA World Cup Round of 16 clash against South Korea:

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Brazil coach Tite reacts to criticism for his decision during FIFA World Cup clash against Cameroon

Brazil coach Tite was criticized for a particular decision he made during the FIFA World Cup clash against Cameroon.

Vinicius Jr. and Raphinha both started on the bench for Selecao's surprise 1-0 loss in their final Group G game. However, only Raphinha came on as a substitute during the 1-0 loss. Tite explained his thoughts behind the call. He told the media (via The Guardian):

“I’m not here to start a fight, I accept criticism for fielding a team that was different. That’s part of life, part of my job. There are different ideas? Of course! But this World Cup has elements that make it different: heat, intensity, short recovery time.”

South Korea have been resilient so far in the tournament. They defeated Portugal in their final group game. Their manager Paulo Bento, however, echoed Tite's sentiments as he told the media ahead of the game:

“I am a realist, I’ve told the players that this is a tough objective but we have to try. After the physical and emotional fatigue of the Portugal game we decided to let them rest. They’ve only trained once. Seventy-two hours between games is too little; I doubt any team can do that. I watched 2018 and I don’t remember that.

"The space between matches was always longer. It’s a burden and we obviously have an additional burden compared to Brazil, because they changed their lineup. They did something we couldn’t do."

Speaking about the monumental task of facing the South American giants, Bento said:

"Our task will be very difficult but we won’t give up. We know we will suffer a bit. We haven’t had the time to practise on [their weaknesses] but we will do it from a theoretical point of view. I told the players that if we played Brazil in many matches, they would be champions but it’s one match and we have a chance."