To all intents and purposes, they had entered sudden death when Neymar meandered his way to the penalty spot, delaying so Claudio Bravo would make his decision for him.
The Chile goalkeeper did, diving to his left and seeing Brazil's idol stroke the ball the other way.
Then, after the €87 million (Dh436m) man, it was Gonzalo Jara, unattached, unwanted by English second-tier side Nottingham Forest. He smiled a nervous smile as he made his way forward. His was a sidefooted effort, beating Julio Cesar. It was almost perfect.
Click here to visit The National's World Cup 2014 landing page
Instead, it rebounded off the post. Brazil were through, quarter-finalists, three games from fulfilling their destiny, but centimetres from agony.
In the final minutes of extra time, after an epic game with more characters, twists in the tale and subplots than many a boxed set, Brazil and Chile had fought each other to a standstill. Then Mauricio Pinilla unleashed an unstoppable shot. It flew past Cesar, left the bar reverberating and rebounded.
The margins are rarely narrower. Brazil were centimetres from elimination. Pinilla was so close to securing the most famous win in Chile's modern history.
Instead, he was one of the culprits. His next shot at the same goal was struck with less venom, a penalty that Cesar read and saved in the shoot-out.
The dividing line between hero and villain is paper thin.
World Cups can embellish reputations – and considering the pressure on his 22-year-old shoulders, Neymar took his penalty with astonishing poise – and rebrand footballers.
Cesar was surplus to requirements at Queens Park Rangers, went on loan at Major League Soccer outfit Toronto FC and only played eight games of club football this season. Then he saved Chile's first two penalties, from Pinilla and the outstanding Alexis Sanchez. Luiz Felipe Scolari's stubborn faith in his goalkeeper was justified.
Scolari has been proved right in other respects. He said he did not want to face Chile, then Jorge Sampaoli's side illustrated why. They have been one of the teams of the tournament. The shame is that they return home in circumstances they know all too well.
Chile are trapped in groundhog World Cups. In 2014, as in 2010 and 1998, they have earned themselves admirers with their attractive football and full-blooded commitment in the group stages, only to exit to Brazil in the last-16. Yet they have never run their neighbours closer.
Their enthusiasm was infectious, their skill beguiling, their stars, Sanchez and Arturo Vidal, men who marked themselves out as among the world's finest players.
They have captured the imagination and Brazil proved imitation is the sincerest form of flattery by emulating them in a game of fervent pressing.
Neither side was afforded the luxury of time on the ball. Brazil aped Chile's policy of swarming around the man in possession.
This match was played at a fearsome pace; the tiki-taka tactic of letting the ball do the work was forgotten.
Neymar set the tone in his duel with Francisco Silva, simply knocking the ball past the Chile centre-back and running. There is something thrillingly visceral about an old-fashioned foot race. Neymar won it time and again with sheer speed. There was nothing complex about it.
Silva's teammates compensated by crowding out Neymar whenever they could. Chile's answer lay in their energy. It always does.
They highlighted Brazil's flaws. Neymar apart, they lack flair. There were no home comforts for striker Fred in his native Belo Horizonte: his was another ineffectual performance to give fuel to his critics.
Hulk, who coughed up possession for Chile's equaliser, had a goal disallowed and missed his penalty in the shoot-out, endured a day when nothing went right. Thiago Silva is the only defender to really inspire confidence.
Yet sometimes World Cup winners muddle through these awkward last-16 ties, as France did against Paraguay in 1998 or Italy against Australia eight years later, before improving.
Brazil, so close to elimination, may sense parallels with the past. Their celebrations showed their jubilation but also revealed their relief. It was almost all over for them.
sports@thenational.ae
Follow us on Twitter @SprtNationalUAE
‘Centimetres from elimination’: Neymar’s brilliance, Julio Cesar’s heroics paper over Brazil flaws
'Their celebrations showed their jubilation but also revealed their relief,' writes Richard Jolly of Brazil's shootout win on Saturday. 'It was almost all over for them'.
Most popular today
