Thiago Silva was back in the Brazil side last night as a 4-1 victory in Manaus edged them closer to qualification for the 2022 World Cup finals.

The 36-year-old came off the bench in Colombia five days previously to bring up 100 appearances for the Selecao and number 101 came from the start as he returned to central defence alongside Benfica’s Lucas Verissimo and captained the team.

Tite’s men raced into a 2-0 lead inside 20 minutes as goals from Neymar and Leeds United winger Raphinha put them in control against Uruguay. The two goalscorers then combined for a third on the hour mark, with Raphinha notching his second of the night in composed fashion.

While the visitors hit back through Luis Suarez, it proved just a consolation effort and Brazil wrapped up the scoring seven minutes from time when Gabriel Barbosa headed in a fourth, with Neymar turning provider once again.

Thiago Silva proved mostly untroubled up against Suarez and Edinson Cavani, with Uruguay mustering just three shots on goal throughout the 90 minutes. The win keeps Brazil six points clear at the top of the South American qualifying standings and also extends their unbeaten record in World Cup qualifying to 28 games.

With four teams advancing direct to Qatar 2022 from the 10-team group, Brazil now need just four points from their remaining seven matches to seal their place at the final tournament. They are back in action next month with qualifiers against Colombia and Argentina.