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After winning five Champions League titles as a club coach, the Italian will make his managerial debut in the sport’s biggest tournament at the helm of a Brazil side that has not lifted the trophy since 2002.

“It’s a new experience, it’s a new responsibility to represent the country of football,” Ancelotti said ahead of Brazil’s Group C opener against Morocco in New Jersey on Saturday.

“It comes down to two words: responsibility and honour. It’s a unique and very beautiful moment in my career.”

“We have a team that can compete with every team in the world, we’re convinced of that. It’s a team with quality and experience, and with absolute confidence that it can compete with anyone,” he added.

Ancelotti, 67, predicted a very “balanced” World Cup and felt his players were well prepared going into their game with Morocco, in a section that also includes Scotland and Haiti.

Brazil landed in the United States with doubts over their prospects after a rocky qualifying campaign, losing six of 18 matches. They finished fifth, which in previous years would have forced them into the play-offs.

They also arrived without injured forwards Rodrygo and Estevao, while Neymar will miss the opening game.

The 34-year-old suffered a right calf injury in mid-May and is expected to return to training next week, according to Ancelotti. He has not played for his country since 2023.

“Neymar is working very hard to recover as quickly as possible,” said the coach. “We called him up not only for his football ability, which is indisputable, but also for the experience and example he can give to the younger players in the group.”

With Neymar ruled out, Vinicius Junior is expected to lead Brazil alongside the likes of Raphinha, Marquinhos, and Casemiro.

The Real Madrid forward made it clear his main goal is to secure another World Cup for his country.

“I’m here to bring Brazil back to the top. I have more games and more experience than at the last World Cup, I’m here to have an excellent tournament,” he said.

“We’ve come here to be champions. We’re at the level of the big national teams, of the great sides. We have great players and we’ve evolved in recent months.

“At the World Cup everything starts from zero: it doesn’t matter who reached the last final, who won the Copa America, what matters is what’s going to happen in tomorrow’s match. We’re here to change history.”

Brazil beat Morocco 3-0 in the group stage of the 1998 World Cup, but the North Africans have drastically closed the gap on the top nations in recent years.

Morocco reached the last four of the 2022 edition in Qatar and were then awarded this year’s Africa Cup of Nations title on home soil after a chaotic final, initially won 1-0 by Senegal after extra time.

Senegal were stripped of the victory after storming off the pitch in protest at a late penalty decision, with the final verdict in the hands of the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

While that saga still lingers in the background, Morocco are focused solely on the challenge in store at the World Cup, and that of facing Brazil.

“It’s a match that will tell us where we stand, but I think we’re in a good place to start this competition,” said coach Mohamed Ouahbi, who replaced Walid Regragui as Morocco boss in March.

“We’ve got to be in confident in ourselves and what we’ve done. We shouldn’t fear Brazil but respect them a lot. We’re not going to do anything special though.”

“Lots of people say it’s not the Brazil of old, but it’s still Brazil,” he added.

THE ULTIMATE UNDERDOG STORY TO GET AROUND AT WORLD CUP

Haiti’s achievement in qualifying for the World Cup amid ongoing turmoil in the Caribbean nation is one of the most inspiring stories of this year’s tournament, and the team are now hoping to make a real impact in the United States as they prepare for their opening game.

Ranked 83rd in the world, Haiti face Scotland in Boston on Saturday in the country’s first match at a World Cup since 1974.

They are clear underdogs in a group also containing Brazil and Morocco, but the Grenadiers believe they can spring a surprise.

“I feel pride for the people of Haiti. We know people might have a bad image of our country, that it has lots of problems, but this will do the country, the people, my family so much good,” star midfielder Jean-Ricner Bellegarde told AFP.

“This is like a big celebration for them, and we are all going to enjoy it.” The 27-year-old Bellegarde, born in the Paris suburbs, has played more than 80 times in the English Premier League over the last three years with Wolverhampton Wanderers.

He is one of several foreign-born players of Haitian heritage who have joined the team coached by Frenchman Sebastien Migne, and Bellegarde had a key role as Haiti notably finished above 2014 World Cup quarter-finalists Costa Rica in qualifying.

“Now are just going to go one game at a time, give our best and see where that takes us,” added Bellgarde after a training session watched by local children and Haitian fans at the team’s Stockton University base, near Atlantic City.

A US government ban has prevented fans travelling from Haiti, a country plagued for years by instability. The United Nations recently said almost 1.5 million people within Haiti have been displaced due to gang-led violence.

However, the team should have considerable backing at their games from the sizeable Haitian community in the United States. After facing Scotland they play Brazil in Philadelphia on June 19 and Morocco in Atlanta on June 24.

The Haitian squad, who were unable to play qualifiers in their home country due to the security situation, got a taste of that support in two friendlies staged in Florida last week.

“The country does so well supporting the team. I think a lot of people were able to see that when we played in Fort Lauderdale, when we played in Miami, the support that we had and the atmosphere they created,” said Derrick Etienne, a winger with MLS side Toronto FC.

“To not be able to play at home is obviously difficult, but we ultimately wanted to do something for the country to help get things going and bring awareness to what’s going on there and change the status quo.”

Etienne, who was born in Richmond, Virginia, but has family back in Haiti, was part of the team that reached the CONCACAF Gold Cup semi-finals in the USA in 2019.

The 29-year-old is now looking to help his country win a World Cup game for the first time — in 1974 they lost all three matches, conceding 14 goals in the process.

“We’re trying to do something that’s never been done before,” he said.

“We understand it’s a hard task, but we have a lot of belief in ourselves. We don’t really have anything to lose, we have everything to gain, so that’s what we’re going to try to do.” The 4-0 demolition of New Zealand last week served as a warning to Haiti’s upcoming opponents, and they have a potential difference-maker in attack in Wilson Isidor.

“He’s direct, strong, good technically and can finish. So, the fact he’s playing with Haiti is amazing,” said Etienne of the Sunderland striker.

Isidor, 25, scored six goals in the Premier League last season. Born in France, he made his Haiti debut in March.

“I’m very proud to represent the country of my Dad,” he said in a break from signing autographs after training.

“I hope I am going to have some amazing adventures with the national team. We have come to deliver a message and show we are not only a small nation that has trouble.”