Vinícius Júnior apologised to Brazil fans after their 1-0 defeat to Paraguay in World Cup qualifying on Tuesday, admitting it is a “difficult time” for the national team.

The loss in Asunción leaves Brazil fifth in the CONMEBOL rankings, behind Argentina, Colombia, Uruguay and Ecuador, with just 10 points from eight games so far.

Vinícius started the match alongside Real Madrid teammates Rodrygo and Endrick, but the trio were unable to respond after Diego Gómez put Paraguay ahead in the 20th minute.

“We apologize to the fans, who are always on our side,” Vinicius told Sportv. “But this is a difficult time, we just want to improve… I know my potential, I know what I can do for the national team. Of course it has been a very difficult process because if you don’t have confidence you don’t get goals, you don’t get assists, you don’t get good performances.

“I know what I can improve. I know what I stand for. If I improve, I will give everyone a lot of peace of mind. I know my responsibility, I want to improve as quickly as possible.”

The top six teams in CONMEBOL qualifying will advance directly to the 2026 World Cup, with the seventh-place team advancing to the play-offs.

Brazil are fifth in the rankings, with a goal difference ahead of Venezuela and one point above Paraguay, who are in seventh place.

“It’s completely different (from playing for Real Madrid),” Vinícius said. “Matches in Europe are different, the ball goes from one side (of the pitch) to the other faster… We have to know how to adapt so that everyone plays better, so that we can win games.

“We know the situation we are in, we want to get Brazil out of this situation at all costs, we all have to go home now and think about what we can do to play well again. We can’t come here, lose these points and play like we did. It’s a difficult time, we have to take all the criticism to heart and come back as soon as possible to put Brazil at the top.”

Dorival Junior, who became Brazil coach in January this year after the interim periods of Ramon Menezes and Fernando Diniz, following Tite’s departure after the 2022 World Cup, took responsibility for his team’s defeat.

“You fight for your best and that doesn’t always happen,” Dorival said. “I felt it. Not only with Viní. The way the first half went, we missed a lot, I’m responsible for that.

“I don’t want to punish any player, but we have to work and understand that we need more to reach the level that we all want… From the moment we conceded the goal, we lost ourselves. Everything that was built up, until the end of the first half, we went away and gave up. It was the worst half since we’ve been here.”

Brazil will play an away match against Chile on October 11, before hosting Peru five days later.

Dorival did not want to speculate about a return to the national team for Neymar, who is recovering from a knee ligament injury.

“First he has to return to his club (Al Hilal),” the coach said. “Until then there is nothing to do. We are always in contact, trying to understand Neymar’s situation and hoping for his recovery, but we have to wait.”