Matheus Cunha took his chance with both hands after being handed the starting spot for Brazil in the FIFA World Cup. The Manchester United man had to settle for a spot on the bench against Morocco in the opening game. But a disappointing performance led to his replacement of Igor Thiago as they took on Haiti in Philadelphia. And Cunha made a resounding statement to manager Carlo Ancelotti as he got on the scoresheet twice in a dominant first half to lead his country to their first win of the tournament.
There was a huge slice of fortune in Cunha’s first goal, as he found himself in the right place at the right time as a loose ball in the box ricocheted off him and into the Haiti net as a defender tried to clear. But his second was a textbook, powerful finish at the near post after a perfectly timed run was found by a perfectly weighted Vinicius Jr. ball to set him free.
The Red Devils star belly flopped onto the turf toward the corner flag, then hopped up into his trademark surf celebration and was mobbed by teammates. It was the sort of composed finish that showed he is ready to lead the line for Brazil in this World Cup with Neymar still out injured.
After Raphinha also limped off in the first half, the other two spots in Brazil’s front-three alongside Vinicius Jr are firmly up for grabs. But Cunha has surely made it his spot to lose after a free-flowing, confident performance where he was at his brilliant best even outside his goals.
As United fans know all too well, Cunha is at his best with the ball at his feet. He carried with ease and purpose on a night where Brazil had things almost all their own way and oozed confidence.
Before the tournament, Cunha said it was his “biggest dream” to not only play at the World Cup but play a big part. "My dream is to be 100% involved in the run-up to the World Cup; whatever [Ancelotti] needs from me, I'll try to do my very best."
After seizing his chance against Haiti, he is now primed to achieve that objective. The next step is trying to add football’s biggest prize to the Olympic gold medal he won in 2020. "To have an Olympic gold medal and a World Cup trophy... There's not much more I could ask of God, really," Cunha said before the tournament. "I think hard work pays off; focus and positive thoughts are what allow you to build your castle."
While Vinicius Jr was named official man of the match, manager Carlo Ancelotti said after the game: “We don't expect it to be Vinícius' World Cup, we expect it to be Brazil's World Cup.” And Cunha proved he is ready to be a big part of Brazil’s quest to go all the way and end a 24-year wait to become World Cup winners again.
