The Brazilian media have united in their criticism of striker Fred in the aftermath of his abject performance against Mexico on Tuesday evening’s goalless draw in Fortaleza.
With the hosts now needing to beat Cameroon on Monday to ensure top spot in Group A, it appears that the biggest recipient of bad press is the Fluminense forward.
Indeed, in the player ratings on lancenet.com, Fred was awarded a paltry 4.2 (albeit midfielder paulinho suffered the ignomity of a 3.7) with the tag-line: “You only noticed him when he was taken off. He didn’t lead the line, and as for his goalscoring…”
With little in the way of alternatives, save for Atletico Mineiro’s Jo, Fred is likely to be given another chance to prove that Brazil indeed do have a viable striker, when they face bottom of the group Cameroon in Brasilia in four days’ time.
