Overview

• Renato Portaluppi is finalizing a defensive, low-risk tactical plan for Fluminense’s round-of-16 match against Inter Milan in the FIFA Club World Cup.
• The coach is integrating veteran center-back Thiago Silva after his recovery to strengthen the back line.
• Portaluppi is the first Brazilian to win the Copa Libertadores as both a player in 1983 and as a coach in 2017.
• After a goalless Serie A season at Roma in 1988–89 earned him the nickname “Gullit bianco,” he has reinvented himself from a controversial playboy to a respected tactician.
• The match will pit South American tactical tradition against the financial firepower of a European heavyweight.