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International Friendlies: Germany 0-1 Brazil, 5 Talking Points

Brazil
Brazil edged Germany in a narrow 1-0 victory

Fresh from the humiliation of a 7-1 thrashing at home in the semifinals of the 2014 World Cup, Brazil were welcomed by Germany for an international friendly - One that wasn't as significant as that game, but still meant the world to both sides.

While Germany entered this game on the back of a 1-1 draw against the lads from Spain, Brazil had just beaten hosts-to-be Russia in an emphatic 3-0 win, and were visibly brimming with confidence despite the absence of their talismanic superstar, Neymar.

Gabriel Jesus was blessed with a spot in the starting 11 ahead of Liverpool's in-form Roberto Firmino, and he sure didn't disappoint. He opened the scoring in the 37th minute, nodding his way past a flat-footed Kevin Trapp to give the visitors the eventual winner.

Germany didn't quite look to be in a position to cause Brazil any concerns last night, and the Selecao made the most of it as they picked up an inconsequential, yet spirit-lifting win over the defending world champions.

Without further ado, here is a look at 5 talking points from last night's clash at the Olympiastadion in Berlin:


#5 Tite is bound to relish a selection headache

Gabriel J
Gabriel Jesus staked a claim for himself

With a plethora of attacking options to choose from, Brazil's coach, Tite, was always going to suffer from relentless selection-related migraines. Last night, he coped with it by favouring Manchester City's Gabriel Jesus over Liverpool's Roberto Firmino.

Neymar's absence may have reduced his the burden, but Jesus' performance certainly didn't. When you're picked ahead of someone who's enjoying their best season, you're expected to perform, and perform Jesus did.

Considering that Firmino has scored 23 goals in all competitions this season, the battle for the striker's slot was always going to be intense. Now, though, Tite could well consider playing both strikers alongside each other, simply because it would be a shame if he left either out.

Firmino has shown us, time and again this season, that he's the kind of player who lets his team-mates play off of him. Why not allow the likes of Jesus, Neymar, Coutinho and Willian piggyback on Firmino's efforts? It has been effective for Liverpool. Surely it can effective for Brazil as well.

With both strikers putting in consistently admirable performances, Tite will have quite a job to do if he's looking to pick between them.

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