SINGAPORE – The samba stars are in town, with several players from Brazil’s 25-man squad arriving in Singapore on Nov 8 ahead of their upcoming friendlies at the National Stadium.

Arsenal’s Brazilian duo Gabriel Magalhaes and Bruno Guimaraes landed in Singapore in the evening, less than 24 hours after the Gunners’ 1-0 win over Hull City in the Premier League.

The pair linked up with their teammates, five of whom had touched down in the Republic hours earlier, after their flight from Dubai landed at Changi Airport at about 1.30pm on Nov 8.

The quintet are Gabriel Bontempo (Santos), Arthur Dias (Athletico Paranaense), Andre Luiz (Corinthians), Jonathan Jesus (Cruzeiro) and Pedro Morisco (Coritiba), who turn out for clubs in Brazil’s top-flight Brasileirao.

Dressed comfortably in casual wear, the group arrived at Terminal 1 discreetly and was promptly escorted to the coach bay.

But the players obliged photo requests from two fans, who approached them as they exited the arrival hall.

One of them was Chinese national Jornin Lu, 43, who had flown in from Shanghai on Nov 7 after learning about Brazil and Japan’s matches in the Republic.

Not knowing when the Brazilian players would arrive, he returned to the airport at 9am on Nov 8, hoping to catch some of them.

The accountant said: “I’m a football fan, so when I knew that Brazil and Japan, both teams that I really like, were playing in Singapore, I came here to see them.

“Technically, they’re very good, and when I was a young boy, the Brazil team played very well when they had players like Ronaldo and Kaka, so I Iike Brazilian football very much.”

Centre-back Gabriel, midfielder Guimaraes and goalkeeper Bento, who plays for Saudi Arabian club Al Nassr, were welcomed by dozens of fans when they pulled up at W Singapore – Sentosa Cove, with the players stopping to sign autographs and take wefies.

They are among several stars who were called up by coach Carlo Ancelotti for the upcoming Mizuho Blue Challenge – The Kallang Football Series Singapore.

Also in the squad are Real Madrid’s Vinicius Jr and Barcelona’s Raphinha, as well as young talents such as Estevao (Chelsea) and Endrick (Real Madrid), as Ancelotti looks to build towards the future.

The Italian has leaned on youth, picking 15 players under the age of 23, with an eye on the 2028 Copa America and 2030 World Cup.

For the five-time world champion’s friendlies against Australia and India in September and October – their first matches after their disappointing World Cup campaign ended in the round of 16 – 11 players in Ancelotti’s 26-player squad were below 23.

In Singapore, Brazil take on Japan on Nov 14 in a rematch of their round-of-32 clash at the World Cup, before they play the Lions three days later.

Paraguay, the final team involved in the quadrangular tournament, will play Singapore in the first game of the event on Nov 13, before facing Japan on Nov 17.