BRAZIL were hit with an early case of friendly fire in their game against Japan after Bruno Guimaraes pelted a ball in Lucas Paqueta’s face.
The pair started in Carlo Ancelotti’s midfield for the Round of 32 game in Texas against the tournament’s dark horses Japan.
Bruno Guimaraes pelted a ball in Lucas Paqueta’s face Credit: X
But just ten minutes into the game and Paqueta found himself on the floor after Guimaraes smashed the ball into his face.
The Newcastle midfield was trying to clear the ball when he hammered it into the former West Ham star’s nose.
One fan said: “Didn’t have Bruno knocking out Paqueta on my Brazil bingo card!”
Another added: “Paqueta seeing stars.”
One grimaced: “He’s nearly killed him.”
Another said: “Paqueta just took the worst face shot by his own team-mate.”
Guimaraes and Paqueta have a close bond on and off the pitch – having played with each other for two years at Lyon from 2020-2022.
Paqueta said in 2025: “Bruno and I are like brothers.
“He’s one of my best friends and we share a lot of our lives with each other.
“Our families are very close and our children are together whenever they can be.
“He is someone I admire a lot and he helped me a lot during my difficult period recently. Our friendship is really special.”
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Eze Chidiebere Paul
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