Rodrygo goal gets Brazil back on the winning track

Brazil got their World Cup qualifying programme back on track as a single goal from Rodrygo was enough to beat Ecuador 1-0.

The Real Madrid forward grabbed the game’s only goal after half an hour, his shot from outside the box taking a deflection off defender William Pacho and going in off the post.

Brazil had come into the game in Curitiba in the sixth and final automatic qualifying spot in South America.

But after defeats to Uruguay, Colombia and Argentina, they returned to winning ways as they ended Ecuador’s five-match unbeaten run.

Brazil dominated possession for large periods of the match, but the lack of cohesion which has dogged them in recent months – which also saw them knocked out the last eight of the Copa America – continued.

They managed just three shots on target despite their superiority.