Tite's side breezed through World Cup qualifying as they topped the South American group after going unbeaten through their 17 games, winning 14 and drawing three.
The world's number one ranked side and five-time winners have been labelled by many as favourites to lift the World Cup come December.
Brazil, who boast the likes of Liverpool pair Alisson and Fabinho, along with Paris Saint-Germain duo Neymar and Marquinhos, have been drawn into a group with Serbia, Switzerland and Cameroon.
However, the Selecao have not appeared in a World Cup final since 2002, when they won the competition, with the last four editions seeing European teams triumph.
Cafu – the only man to appear in three consecutive finals, winning in 1994, losing in 1998 and captaining in the 2002 win – believes it is time for Brazil to claim a sixth World Cup.
"Every competition that Brazil steps into there is the pressure to win it. They are a huge country in the world with a huge history," Cafu told BBC Sport.
"The pressure to win is always there in any game, not just the World Cup. We have a very good generation of Brazilian footballers coming through so the expectation is there as usual.
"It is about time we won, it is clear if we don't win the World Cup it will be a failure. We all have the expectations and hopes that we can do it."
Gareth Southgate's England must negotiate a group with Iran, the United States and one of either Wales, Scotland or Ukraine.
England are on the opposite side of the draw to Brazil, meaning the two sides cannot meet before the semi-final stage.
Cafu, who is his country's most-capped player after making 142 appearances, suggested a meeting between the two nations would be a dream for Brazilian fans.
"For the Brazilian people it would be considered a dream final because of the historical weight of the two nations in football," he said.
"This match would carry huge emotion and it would be beautiful not only for the fans of England but also for football in general."
Brazil are yet to appoint a successor to Tite, whose six-year stint in charge came to an end after the five-time world champions were knocked out at the quarter-final stage of the 2022 World Cup by Croatia.
Ramon Menezes, who guided Brazil's Under-20s to South American U-20 Championship in February, has taken over on an interim basis for Saturday's friendly against Morocco.
The coach who has been linked with the full-time role the most, however, is Ancelotti.
Several Brazil players have openly approved his potential candidacy and Casemiro joined the chorus, though the former Madrid player reminded his team-mates of a need to respect Ancelotti's employers.
"Firstly, what we players would like to have is a capable coach with great players," Casemiro told reporters on Friday.
"We have 30, 40, 50 players of exceptional level. You could make three, four teams that could compete with any other team in the world.
"As far as Ancelotti is concerned, he is a coach that I already know, I know very well. He is a friend of mine, he is someone I have admired in football and it was a pleasure to work with him.
"But there is also another side to this; Ancelotti has a club, which is Real Madrid. We have to respect the club and Ancelotti."
He added: "Ancelotti has already won everything in his career. He is a coach with a lot of experience and, without a doubt Ancelotti is a great coach."
Casemiro was also careful not to completely rule Ramon out of the running.
A former Brazil international who enjoyed a 26-year professional career and has spent much of the past decade in various coaching roles, Ramon is not thought to be among the frontrunners for the full-time job.
But Casemiro pointed out the 50-year-old now has an opportunity to stake his claim and insisted the players are treating him as if he was there for the long term.
"We also have a coach here, who is Ramon," Casemiro continued. "He is not the permanent one, but he is here to play this game and we know that in life there are opportunities.
"Today, he is not permanent, but if he does a great job, [and] if the names that the president [of the Brazilian Football Confederation] wants do not accept, Ramon is there.
"From the moment I came here, I am respecting that and treating him as if he was the coach of a World Cup. Not only me, but all the players are respecting him because he is the coach now, and you have to have respect for the coach."
Tite's side coasted through South American World Cup qualifying, going unbeaten as they booked a place at this year's showpiece tournament.
Brazil have not won the World Cup since 2002, their fifth triumph overall, and will first have to contend with Serbia on November 24 before clashes against Switzerland and Cameroon follow in Group G.
Argentina are another force in the battle for the trophy, with the Copa America champions undefeated in 33 games – the longest intact unbeaten run in international football.
Holders France will also prove stern competition, while England, Belgium, Spain and Germany are among the favourites for success.
But Tite insists it is time for Brazil, who have overtaken Belgium at the top of the world rankings, to deliver.
"I'm expectant but focused. We reached the World Cup; now it's time to reach the final and be champions. This is the truth," he told The Guardian.
"At the last World Cup I was the manager because of other circumstances [Dunga was fired in 2016 and Tite took over].
"Now I have had the opportunity to do the full four-year cycle. Expectations are high but the focus is on work. The pressure we face is a problem: the responsibility, the pressure of the position, the demands.
"When I was a supporter, I wanted the team to be the best. It's what moves us. But mental health is important. I think about what [Nelson] Mandela said: 'Courage is the ability to face fear'.
"In every decision he made, fear was present. When I read that, I saw that I am a normal citizen. I have my fears, my nightmares, my little goosebumps. Fear but not dread; fear and dread are different."
Vinicius Junior has come to the forefront for Real Madrid in the 2021-22 campaign, but Tite believes Neymar remains the main star for Brazil.
"Neymar is Neymar. He remains our biggest star. The difference now is that the glow is diluted by nearby stars that can also shine," he added.
"Neymar's greatness is that he understands this – about the growth of these kids. He encourages the boys to go up a level. Time and experience provide this maturity.
"Because of Neymar's greatness, there will always be great expectations. But now it's diluted. It's Neymar, but also Vinícius, Raphinha; Thiago [Silva] is at a high level again, Paqueta, Casemiro, Fabinho too."
Tite has come into criticism during his spell as Brazil boss, particularly after a quarter-final exit at the 2018 World Cup, but he believes the questioning of his methods is unfair.
"We need time to understand. Works are best seen when they are at a distance, finished. We have results," Tite said.
"What people are expecting? We beat the record [for the most points] in the qualifiers. We have the longest unbeaten streak, 12 games [under Tite in qualifying for the 2018 World Cup] and now 17 games without a loss [in the 2022 qualifiers]. That is 29 games."
Ancelotti is reportedly set to become Brazil's new head coach at the end of the 2023-24 season when his contract expires at Real Madrid, where he has enjoyed a hugely successful association, winning a pair of Champions League titles over two spells with the club.
Brazil, meanwhile, are coming off the back of a disappointing World Cup that saw them crash out on penalties to Croatia in the quarter-finals, ending their hopes of lifting the famous trophy for a record-extending sixth time and leading to head coach Tite resigning from his post.
It has been 21 years since the Selecao last won the World Cup, but Lucas believes Ancelotti is the right appointment to bring international football's top prize back to Brazil at the next edition in 2026.
"It's the first time that a foreign manager takes over the national team," Lucas said. "It’s exciting because he's a winner, he’s won everything, wherever he went he was successful.
"We just hope that he can bring his experience and his qualities to the national team because we want to win the World Cup again.
"Now as a fan, I will be hoping that Ancelotti does a fantastic job, because at the end of the day, we want Brazil winning and if he can bring experience and quality and his knowledge about football to Brazil, not only the national team, but the country, I think it will be fantastic."
Ancelotti has won the title in all five of the major European leagues, while no manager has as many Champions League trophies as his four.
It is this status as a serial winner that makes Lucas so confident in Ancelotti's ability to lead Brazil to glory again.
Lucas, who played 24 times for his national team between 2007 and 2013, explained: "If you look at his career, he's won everywhere he went.
"I just hope that he can bring all his qualities here. He's experienced and he has talent to manage a national team like Brazil with so many players who didn't win the last four or five World Cups.
"If he's the right person, I think so and I think he showed in his career that he is able to do that. We could say many names here that could also be the right manager for the national team of Brazil. But I think he is one of the managers that is capable of bringing new ideas and new things for the team."
Tite discussed the lavishly gifted yet divisive forward in an interview with France Football.
He believes Neymar, who moved to PSG from Barcelona in a world record move in August 2017, played the best football of his career at Camp Nou.
The 28-year-old has frequently been linked with a return to Barcelona after a pair of seasons where injuries frustrated his hopes of bringing Champions League glory to the French capital.
"Neymar is essential, but not irreplaceable," Tite said. "In each match, I ask myself the same question: how to get the best out of him, build and balance the team around him?
"The position where I found him performing best at a club, as in the national team, was when he played in Barcelona, on the left side to come [inside].
"In other words, starting from one side, where he worked with the environment, then using his perception of the game, his speed of reflection and execution, his capacity for improvisation, and adding his speed to it.
"The best Neymar I saw playing was during this period. The level of play he reached then was exceptional and only [Lionel] Messi and [Cristiano] Ronaldo were above. I have never seen [Eden] Hazard, [Antoine] Griezmann or [Paul] Pogba play at this level."
Brazil emphatically showed there is life without Neymar as they claimed Copa America glory on home soil last year, despite their star man missing the tournament with an ankle injury.
Tite's side closed out a 3-1 win over Peru in the final – a victory Tite felt served to exorcise any demons remaining from their humiliating 7-1 semi-final loss to Germany as World Cup hosts in 2014.
"Winning the Copa America, at home in Brazil, was a major challenge," he said. "Especially for the players who had experienced the affront of 2014 as closely as possible - Dani Alves, Fernandinho, Thiago Silva.
"This title was all the more important since we had lost Neymar to injury just a few days before the start of the tournament. The pressure and the expectation of the supporters was considerable. Winning was, therefore, the only option available to us.
"When you have to face Argentina with Messi, Uruguay with [Edinson] Cavani and [Luis] Suarez, or Colombia with James (Rodriguez), his absence necessarily creates more emotional instability.
"Neymar reassures you, because he brings unpredictability to your game. Because he will offer you an individual or collective solution that the others do not have. So winning without him and resisting this pressure made the group aware of its value, yes."
Brazil was this week confirmed by CONMEBOL as the new host nation for the upcoming Copa America, which was postponed last year due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The tournament was due to be staged in Colombia and Argentina, but was moved due to mounting political unrest in the former country and a surge in COVID-19 cases in the latter.
Yet there is uncertainty over whether Brazil will compete in the competition due to their displeasure over the relocation of the event.
Captain Casemiro suggested the entire Selecao squad are united against hosting the Copa America, which starts on June 13, with Brazil so hard hit by coronavirus.
There has been talk that Tite could resign before the tournament, but the coach gave little away after the victory over Ecuador, with another World Cup qualifier against Paraguay to come on Tuesday.
Tite said in a media conference: "I am doing my job normally. I always do. I am at peace with myself.
"My adversities are very little in comparison with other people."
Asked if he could quit next week, Tite replied: "You can raise any hypothesis, I only ask you to be careful. I will express it when it matters. Not now. This was a tough match against Ecuador."
Casemiro earlier told TV Globo: "We are not going to talk about this [the stance on Brazil staging the Copa America], Tite already told how the opinion is.
"As the captain and leader, we already have our position. We want to talk but now is not the moment to do it.
"I'm not the only one, it's not only the European players [against hosting], we are all. When someone speaks, everybody does it, or Tite, or coaching staff. We have to be unified."
Richarlison opened the scoring and Neymar added a stoppage-time penalty as Brazil took another step towards securing their spot in next year's World Cup in Qatar, making it five wins out of five at the expense of Ecuador.
Paris Saint-Germain and France forward Mbappe said in May that European teams have an advantage in the global showpiece due to playing "high-level matches" in qualifying.
Mbappe, who lifted the World Cup with France in 2018, added that football in South America "is not as developed as in Europe".
However, Brazil boss Tite does not agree with those comments and feels the quality of football in the CONMEBOL region is as high as anywhere in the world.
"Maybe he is talking about these Nations League clashes or European friendlies, but not World Cup qualifiers," Tite told ESPN.
"We don't have, with all due respect, Azerbaijan to play. We don't have anyone that gives you a break.
"The qualifiers here have a much higher degree of difficulty than the group stage [of European qualifying]."
The past four editions of the World Cup have been won by European teams – Italy in 2006, Spain in 2010, Germany in 2014 and France in 2018.
That is the longest run of victories for a single continent in the history of the tournament, with only one runner-up – Argentina in 2014 – coming from outside the continent.
Indeed, 12 of the previous 21 World Cups have been won by European teams, with South America responsible for the other nine winners.
France booked their spot at Qatar 2022 by finishing top of their qualifying group with five wins and three draws from their eight matches.
Brazil also went unbeaten in qualifying thanks to 14 wins and three draws en route to finishing six points ahead of Argentina in top spot in the 10-team pool.
Three-time World Cup winner Pele, regarded among the greatest players of all time, is receiving medical care at home in Brazil.
The 82-year-old underwent surgery to remove a tumour from his colon last year, and has been in and out of hospital since.
His daughter, Kely Nascimento, has said there is "no surprise or emergency" over her father's hospitalisation after he was admitted this week.
Particularly coming at a time when a World Cup is taking place and he is not present, the news of Pele needing hospital attention has caused concern for many.
Tite read out a statement before taking questions at Brazil's press conference, saying: "We all wish a lot of health to Pele.
"We found out the news from the press. He’s the biggest representative of the national team and we wish him much health. That is the feeling of all the squad, we wish Pele the very best."
Pele's daughter said in her statement on Wednesday that "the media is freaking out again", adding that she planned to visit her father in the new year, with her brothers visiting at present.
As Brazil got their tournament under way last week, Pele sent the squad a message of good luck. He was a World Cup winner in 1958, 1962 and 1970.
He wrote on Instagram: "Today we start writing a new story. No matter the size and tradition of the opponents: we must respect and play each match with the focus of a final.
"It is important to play beautifully, yes, but it is also essential to leave everything on the pitch.
"Today, we will be more than 200 million hearts beating as one, vibrating with each achievement of our Selecao.
"I am sending all positive energies to you. I'm sure we'll have a happy ending. God bless you. Bring this trophy home!"
Brazil have begun their campaign with a 2-0 win over Serbia and a 1-0 success against Switzerland, rounding off their Group G campaign against Cameroon on Friday.
