If the Brazil tragedy could be summed up in a pic - it would be Neymar's smile

This has evolved into a pattern by now - Brazil easily wins the World Cup group, gets past a non-European side and then gets swept away by the first European team they face in the knockouts.

It started in 2006 (vs France, 1/4 finals), continued four years later (vs Netherlands, 1/4 finals), erupted in a home tragedy in 2014 (vs Germany, 1/2 finals), and then repeated itself in the next three tournaments (vs Belgium in 2018, vs Croatia in 2022 and vs Norway in 2026).

Haaland leads Norway towards history! Two shots are all it took to hand Brazil another disgrace

There are entire generations of young Brazilians who haven't witnessed Brazil top a European team at World Cups, with the last one being that WC triumph in the showdown against Germany 24 years ago in Yokohama.

Last night's 2-1 defeat to Norway, moreover, is the worst Selecao result at the global tournament since 1990, when they were also eliminated in the Round of 16 (Diego Maradona's Argentina). The Brazilian football federation CBF, gambled with coaching veteran Carlo Ancelotti, and he put all of his incredible managerial credo on the line by calling up Neymar. Injured, unable to perform at the high level, sad, the shadow of his former self...

However, nothing encapsulates the ridiculousness of Neymar's presence in this Brazil team like his behaviour during and after the 90+10 penalty he scored last night. Despite being two goals down, with only seconds left on the clock, he decided to play some bizarre mind games with the Norwegian keeper before laughing at his face after finding the back of the net. The final whistle was basically there, and Brazil were already on their way home while this tragic figure was smiling as if he had confirmed some routine victory.

A truly grotesque moment, followed by his bullying of Martin Odegaard as a sign of frustration and this player's everlasting flaw - it always was, has been and will be all about him. That's not the way to lead your side, as Brazil's high-profile gamble ended in disaster.

After the end of the game, the 34-year-old announced this was his last game for the national side.

On the other hand, it's maybe immature to expect magic tricks from Ancelotti, but the fact remains that Norway and their coach, Stale Solbakken, outsmarted them in every sense of the word. The stats show that the Scandinavians made 503 passes compared to just 230 by Brazil, which speaks volumes and demonstrates dominance not only in possession but also in control of the game.

The Selecao had their chances through Endrick - and that incredibly promising one-on-one opportunity - and Bruno Guimaraes, who missed an early penalty, which could have shifted the game into a completely different direction. However, without injured Raphinha and Lucas Paqueta, the South Americans proved to be a mediocre side, which even the likes of Vinicius Junior, Matheus Cunha and Casemiro could not transform into a title contender. Even reaching the 1/4 finals seems like an impossible mission for this group of players.

Talking to the press after the match, Casemiro almost burst into tears. His voice almost broke as he began responding to the question, as two reporters comforted him.

He said: "It's difficult to find… to find words. I'm sorry. It's difficult to find words at the moment. It's always been a dream to win the World Cup. "

His teammate, Vinicius Jr, added that it's a very sad day for all of them.

"Being eliminated from a World Cup is always a huge blow."

Asked about his future with the national side, the 67-year-old Ancelotti wasn't very talkative.

"Everyone is profoundly disappointed. I don't think we had a spectacular World Cup, but we did a good one, and we even deserved to win this match at times. This is a defeat, and we have to keep doing our jobs and continue improving. It's not the end; it's the beginning of a new cycle."

Hopefully, Ancelotti is aware of the size of this national tragedy for the Brazilians and how much that cycle means to them. There are so many ways to start it, and this one seems like the worst possible.

WORLD CUP - KNOCKOUT STAGE

Round of 16

Saturday

Canada - Morocco 0-3 (0-0)

/Ounahi 50, 82, Rahimi 90+8/

Sunday

France - Paraguay 1-0 (0-0)

/Mbappe 70 pen/

Brazil - Norway 1-2 (0-0)

/Neymar 90+10 pen - Haaland 79, 90/

Monday

Mexico - England 2-3 (1-2)

/Quinones 42, Jimenez 69 pen - Bellingham 36,38, Kane 60 pen/

22.00: (3.80) Portugal (3.45) Spain (2.00)

Tuesday

03.00: (2.70) USA (3.40) Belgium (2.65)

19.00: (1.37) Argentina (4.70) Egypt (9.00)

23.00: (3.40) Switzerland (3.25) Colombia (2.30)

***odds are subject to change***