Brazil striker Hulk says revenge is not on the agenda as the FIFA World Cup hosts bid to all but secure their place in the last-16 against Group A rivals Mexico today.
Mexico shattered Brazil’s dream of winning the only major prize missing from their honors list two years ago when they stunned the South American side 2-1 to claim the Olympic gold medal in London.
Despite this, Hulk insists there is no question of the Selecao looking to settle a score as they face El Tri at Fortaleza’s Estadio Castelao.
It is the same venue where they met in the group stage of the Confederations Cup last year when Luiz Felipe Scolari’s side claimed a 2-0 victory. That success means a measure of revenge has already been exacted and Zenit St Petersburg’s Hulk said Brazil will only have one thing on their minds come kickoff.
“In the Confederations Cup we tried to think only about winning the game and it will be the same this time,” said the powerful forward, who scored in the Olympic final.
Nevertheless, that loss left its mark on him, Thiago Silva, Marcelo, Oscar and Neymar, the five members of Brazil’s squad who also played in the final at Wembley Stadium.
“Of course I was very sad. It is a medal that Brazil have never won and we lost the final,” said Oscar, one of the standout performers in Brazil’s opening 3-1 win against Croatia in Sao Paulo on Thursday.
The Mexico squad features eight members of the 2012 gold medalist side and they also started their Group A campaign with a win, beating Cameroon 1-0 on Friday.
Of greatest concern to Mexico would appear to be the potential of Turkish referee Cuneyt Cakir to be swayed by the home fans, after seeing the Selecao benefit from a controversial penalty against Croatia.
Mexico must also snap a miserable run against Brazil in World Cups: El Tri have lost their past three meetings without scoring once.
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