Vinicius Jr. Inspires Brazil to First Copa America Win Under Dorival Jr.

Brazil's Vinicius Jr. emerged as the star of the show in their 4-1 Copa America victory over Paraguay, bouncing back from a lackluster performance in their tournament opener. The victory marked Brazil's first win in six competitive matches and their maiden competitive triumph under manager Dorival Jr., who took charge in January.

From the outset, Vinicius' pace and trickery posed a constant threat to Paraguay down the left flank, a stark contrast to his ineffective display in Brazil's 0-0 draw with Costa Rica. Despite Brazil's strong start, Paraguay nearly took the lead in the 15th minute, but Damian Bobadilla's goal-bound effort was deflected off Eder Militao and nearly wrongfooted goalkeeper Alisson Becker.

Brazil earned a penalty in the 28th minute for a handball, but Lucas Paqueta's spot-kick was wide of the mark. However, the midfielder made amends seven minutes later, setting up Vinicius with a first-time pass to cap off a flowing team move. Girona winger Savio doubled Brazil's advantage after pouncing on a rebound inside the box, before Vinicius diverted a clearance from Omar Alderete into the net for his second goal of the night in first-half stoppage time.

Paraguay got a goal back after the break as Alderete netted a superb long-range effort, but any hopes of a comeback were swiftly dashed when Brazil were awarded a penalty in the 68th minute after a handball by Mathias Villasanti. Despite his earlier miss, Paqueta stepped up and made no mistake at the second time of asking to send Brazil's fans into delirium.

Towards the end of the match, tempers flared and Andres Cubas was shown a red card after kicking out at Douglas Luiz, with Brazil using their man advantage to comfortably see out the game and clinch the three points.

Tags: #CopaAmerica, #Brazil, #ViniciusJr, #Paraguay, #DorivalJr