Brazil’s defence uncertain after Wesley withdrawal from 2026 World Cup squad

Six days before their World Cup opener, Brazil lost their starting right-back. Wesley, the 22-year-old AS Roma defender, has been ruled out of the 2026 FIFA World Cup after sustaining a left thigh adductor muscle injury during a friendly against Egypt on June 7 in Cleveland.

Brazil won that match 2-1.

What happened and what comes next

An MRI scan confirmed what the Brazilian camp feared: Wesley’s injury is severe enough to end his tournament before it begins. The diagnosis came swiftly, and by June 8, coach Carlo Ancelotti had already called up Atalanta midfielder Éderson as a replacement.

Éderson is a midfielder, not a right-back.

Brazil’s opening match against Morocco is scheduled for June 13, 2026. That gives Ancelotti roughly five days to figure out a defensive configuration that no longer has an obvious solution at right-back.

The two names being floated as potential stopgaps are Danilo and Ibáñez, neither of whom is a natural fit for the role. Brazil has no specialist right-back left in the squad after Wesley’s injury.

What this means for the tournament

Morocco reached the semi-finals of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, becoming the first African nation to advance that far in the tournament’s history.

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