Brazil fans in complete agreement about Murillo as Nottingham Forest star is snubbed by Dorival Junior

Add as preferred source on Google

Murillo is once again in the Brazil national squad but will be hoping for a more fruitful experience than in 2024 when he received no minutes on the pitch.

Morgan Gibbs-White felt Murillo deserved his Brazil chance when reacting to the defender’s first call-up in November, amidst the rapid realisation in world football that the Nottingham Forest man was one of the top defensive talents in the game today.

Even ex-Forest man Felipe was proud to see Murillo called up by Brazil, but the 22-year-old’s first experience with his national team didn’t quite go as he would’ve hoped.

Football fans were disappointed to see Murillo on the bench for Brazil across both of November’s matches against Venezuela and Uruguay, as the centre-back received zero minutes of action from head coach Dorival Junior.

Despite this, Murillo was still proud to represent Brazil but with his form only continuing to excel at the City Ground, he’d have been hoping to earn a chance to play for his country against Colombia on Thursday evening.

Brazil fans react as Murillo receives zero minutes against Colombia

Unfortunately, a similar story unfolded as Murillo was resigned to the bench as Brazil relied on a stoppage-time winner from Vinicius Junior to beat Colombia in Brasilia.

Once again, Gabriel of Arsenal and Marquinhos of PSG were preferred to Murillo, leading Brazilian fans to social media to voice their opinions about Dorival’s selection choices.

One fan said: The guy [Dorival] managed to put Murillo as the fourth option for the defence, man… a defender who has only played against Madureira and Volta Redonda is ahead of him in the Brazilian team.”

Another fan questioned: “What did Murillo do to Dorival to see Marquinhos as a starter for the national team?” Whilst another Brazilian added: “What will Murillo have to do to get into a national team game?”

One Brazil fan said: “For me, Leo Ortiz and Murillo will come in the next game, Dorival has to test the players he has.” Another fan added: “Tuesday is the day to debut Murillo in defence, huh Dorival, the best defender trained in Brazil since Thiago Silva.”

Dorival continued to be questioned, with another Brazilian saying: “Murillo never sits on the bench for Marquinhos in this team, but it’s Dorival, right?” Another said: “If Dorival doesn’t play Murillo against Argentina he might give up.”

Murillo could make his Brazil debut in a crucial Argentina clash

There are few international games that come close to the spectacle of Brazil vs Argentina, so if Brazilian fans get their way, Murillo will be debuting for the national team against their fiercest rivals.

If the stakes weren’t already high enough, though, Murillo would be stepping out for Brazil in a crucial game for World Cup qualification. Argentina currently top the CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying table, but with the win over Colombia, Brazil have climbed to second.

Given the tightness of the group, Brazil’s position in the top six is not yet secured with four matches still to play after the Argentina match. With the fans’ reaction to Murillo’s snub hinting at dissatisfaction with Dorival, a morale-crushing defeat to their rivals could be incredibly damaging.

Murillo has been spotted in Brazil training as he bides his time for an opportunity he has certainly earned, so it remains to be seen whether Dorival is brave enough to throw the rising defensive star into the deep end in Buenos Aires on Wednesday.