Former Arsenal midfielder Gilberto Silva fears that the pressure of being the host nation could harm Brazil's chances of winning the World Cup this summer.
Luis Felipe Scolari's side are the favourites to triumph at the tournament, but Gilberto has admitted that the high expectation levels could mean that being the home country will act as a burden rather than inspire them.
He also has concerns about the inexperience of the squad, the lack of competitive matches that they have played in the build-up and the recent failures at World Cups increasing the pressure further.
"For Brazil this World Cup will be lots of pressure," he told BT Sport's SportsHUB. "We are playing at home and have lost at the last two World Cups. We have a very young team who don't have experience in this kind of competition which is completely different from a friendly match or the Confederations Cup.
"It's tough because for the last three-and-a-half years we have not been playing qualification matches which give you the strength and understanding of what you will face in the World Cup.
"With Scolari as manager I think he will let all the players know exactly what he expects of them and how important their performances are to the country and to themselves."
Gilberto was capped 93 times by the Selecao between 2001 and 2010.
Joe Fish
