Matheus Cunha's mother was spotted streaming tears of joy as her son scored a brace for Brazil at the World Cup. The versatile forward is one of a number of Manchester United stars who have impressed on the world stage across North America over the past couple of weeks.
Cunha's Impact Against Haiti
After emerging as a second-half substitute during Brazil's opener against Morocco, which finished 1-1, Cunha did enough in Carlo Ancelotti's eyes to start against Haiti in the early hours of Saturday morning. The 27-year-old wasted no time making a mark. Just 23 minutes in, Cunha showed a poacher's prowess when latching onto a rebounded effort from Vinicius Jr, firing home from close range to give his nation the lead. A little over 10 minutes later, he doubled his tally.
A slick through ball from Vini Jr found Cunha breaking through the Haitian backline before blasting with venom with his left foot into the top of Johny Placide's near corner. As jubilation on the pitch spread, fans inside the Philadelphia Stadium erupted into emotion, none more so than Cunha's mother.
Emotional Moment in the Stands
In a video uploaded to social media, she is spotted standing with her hands on her head in amazement, tears of joy streaming down her face as she is comforted by a fellow fan. The clip then pans to Cunha, beaming on the pitch as he turns toward his mother and pumps his fist in elation.
Vini Jr scored on the stroke of half-time to secure a 3-0 win for Brazil, thrusting them to the top of Group C standings with four points. They have qualified for the knockout stages regardless of their result against Scotland on Wednesday, June 24.
Other Manchester United Stars at the World Cup
Casemiro, who will leave the club this summer, also played a vital part in Brazil's win, playing the full 90 minutes plus added time. Noussair Mazraoui helped keep a clean sheet in Morocco's 1-0 win over Scotland on Friday evening, with young United talent Tyler Fletcher remaining on the bench for Scotland.
Bruno Fernandes and Diogo Dalot are on international duty with Portugal, though Dalot has yet to feature. Amad is with the Ivory Coast for their clash with Germany on Saturday evening. Senne Lammens, Kobbie Mainoo, Lisandro Martinez, and Marcus Rashford are also representing their home nations.
United's Concerns
While United will be elated to see their players shining, they will spare a thought for Altay Bayindir, who will return to Manchester prematurely. Turkey were eliminated from the tournament early Saturday morning despite having one game left to play due to head-to-head factors. Bayindir did not feature in Turkey's 2-0 loss to Australia or their 1-0 defeat to a 10-man Paraguay, and his participation in Turkey's final Group D encounter with USA on Friday, June 26, is in doubt.
