The Brazilian national team held its first training session on Saturday ahead of Tuesday’s crucial 2026 World Cup qualifier against Argentina, but the spotlight was on the absence of Vinicius Jr from the main group.
The [Real Madrid](https://www.managingmadrid.com) forward, who scored the decisive goal in Brazil’s 2-1 victory over Colombia on Thursday, was notably held out of squad training. During the 15 minutes of practice open to the press, Vinicius was seen performing isolated exercises and running laps around the pitch. He was accompanied by a member of Brazil’s technical staff while the rest of his teammates engaged in ball work and tactical drills.
Brazilian head coach Dorival Júnior refrained from providing specific details about the decision to keep Vinicius separate from the group. However, the most likely scenario is that it was a precautionary measure to manage the player’s workload.
Despite the absence from full training, there is no indication that Vinicius’s participation in the upcoming match is in jeopardy. Brazil is set to continue preparations with additional training sessions on Sunday and Monday before traveling to Buenos Aires for the highly anticipated derby.