Given Roberto Firmino had the season of his life last time out and both Gabriel Jesus and Neymar spent portions of it out injured, you might be forgiven for thinking the Liverpool forward would start for Brazil in their World Cup campaign.
However, talisman Neymar was never going to find himself on the bench, and manager Tite even acknowledged he would be playing while less than 100% fit – and despite Firmino having arguably a better reason to start in Russia than Jesus, he found himself on the bench for the opening game of the tournament.
It didn't work out so well for Brazil, who surrendered the lead and managed to draw their opening game 1-1, and while Neymar more than justified his place, Gabriel Jesus did not. In fact, when Firmino came on, the Liverpool player looked brighter and the team sharper with him on.
Now, there have been those who felt Firmino's missed chance at the death cost Brazil all three points, and that alone means he should be benched for the Costa Rica game – yet most forwards miss a couple of chances during a game, and the probability of Firmino scoring if he's on for 90 minutes is of course infinitely higher than if he's been put on as a last 15-minute Hail Mary.
Given Firmino netted a huge 27 times last term – compared to the 19 goals Jesus managed to score (albeit, he did miss a portion of the season through injury) and has a ready-made relationship with Philippe Coutinho, who already looks like he's on fire this summer, it makes more sense for Tite to at least try Firmino as his starting option.
This is by no means a slight on Jesus, a fantastic player and someone who has talent beyond his years – it's simply questioning if Firmino presents a better option for the Brazilian team as a whole – something that gets lost far too much in international football, with the best player in a certain position sometimes not the best player for the team as a whole.
Firmino might not be the trendy option, with Brazilian fans and ex-players huge fans of Jesus, yet judging by the opening game, Jesus is struggling in terms of his decision making, and a more experienced head like Firmino may find that less of an issue. There's also the fact Jesus didn't look on the same wave-length as many of his teammates – not an issue for Firmino, who as mentioned has a brilliant relationship and understanding with Coutinho in particular.
While many have claimed this will be the World Cup of Neymar, Coutinho has started off as well as any player bar Cristiano Ronaldo, and being deployed slightly deeper seems to be suiting him down to the ground. Playing Firmino may even take Coutinho to yet another level – and that would only benefit Brazil.
Perhaps the mistake Tite has made is making it so clear Jesus is his number one choice, meaning the pressure is heaped on him, and there's even more reason for people to debate and scrutinise his performances.
That leaves open the very real possibility that Jesus will end up the scapegoat for a bad game – as has happened with the opening match in some quarters – and the pressure may end up knocking his confidence. He is a brilliant player, but he's also human and certainly needs to be protected to a degree as well.
A better idea may have been to make it clear the position would be rotated and open to whoever was playing better at the time – and there's always the option to come off the bench and change the game as well, something both Firmino and Jesus are more than capable of doing.
Both players work so hard off the ball, and will give anything to the team, and it's understandable Tite loves Jesus given his performance for Brazil at the 2016 Olympics and the fact that it was Jesus who netted twice on what was both his debut in the senior team and Tite's first game as manager after replacing Dunga.
At that point, Firmino was out in the cold, and simply played too well to be ignored, with Tite noting the 'pressure' Firmino was putting on Jesus in terms of the starting XI before the World Cup started. After a poor performance from Jesus that pressure will have risen even more, and it's one thing to persevere with a player if there are no suitable alternatives, but when there's someone as dynamic as Firmino on the bench, it becomes harder and harder to leave them out.
