Brazil managed to find the form when they needed to, and now it is about carrying forward that return of mojo and firing a few goals past Colombia when the two teams meet in the quarterfinals of the Rio 2016 Olympics men's football tournament on Saturday in Sao Paolo.
The hosts were staring at elimination after the group stages, following two consecutive 0-0 draws, but a 4-0 win over Denmark in their final round robin game allayed those worries. Now that those worries have turned into smiles, with the likes of Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel "Gabigol" Barbosa finding their scoring touch, Brazil will know the need to refocus and do all the things they did right, again, against fellow South American side Colombia.
Get all the results and scores of the quarterfinals HERE
Brazil will bank on their Gabriels to find the back of the net one more time, after Barbosa opened the scoring in the final group match against Denmark, before Jesus added a brace. Luan also got on the scoresheet for Brazil, with the only worry being that their talisman Neymar is yet to score.
It has not been for the want of trying, but Neymar has just not looked his lethal self, with an ankle injury thought to be causing the Barcelona forward a few problems as well. However, the Brazil No.10 and captain is expected to start the game against Colombia, who will be wary of the threat posed by the striker, fully fit or not.
Colombia, though, are also buoyant after their own qualification into the knockout rounds, the first time they have done so in the Olympics men's football tournament.
The South Americans reached the knockout stages, like Brazil, with a last group stage match victory, a 2-0 result over Nigeria. Now, they will have their eye on a bigger scalp. One of the players to watch out for in this quarterfinal is Dorlan Pabon, who scored in that 2-0 win over Nigeria and who knows a thing or two about playing in Sao Paolo.
"It's a little unusual and very nice to be back here now with the national team," Pabon told FIFA's official website. "As a football player, you play in a lot of different cities in your career, and this is special. I didn't spend a long time in Sao Paulo, but the fans showed me a lot of love.
"The good thing is my return went just how I'd wanted, just how I'd planned."
Brazil will hope their evening in Sao Paolo also goes as planned.
Where to Watch Live
Brazil vs Colombia is set to begin at 10 p.m. local time (6.30 a.m. IST, 2 a.m. BST). Live Streaming and TV information is below.
India: Star Sports. Live Streaming: Hotstar.
Brazil: TV: SporTV, Globo and ESPN. Live Streaming: ESPN Play Latin America.
Colombia: TV: Claro Sports and Fox Sports.
UK: TV: BBC Red Button. Live Streaming: BBC iPlayer.
USA: TV: NBCSN. Live Streaming: NBC Sports Live Extra and NBC Olympics.
Middle East and North Africa: TV: Bein Sports Arabia. Live Streaming: Bein Sports Connect.
