Possession the issue for playmakers Brazil
24 June 2005
by FIFAworldcup.com
Against the tournament hosts, Brazil know that they will have to be at their
scintillating best to come through this weekend's semi-final clash at the
FIFA Confederations Cup Germany 2005. The world champions were pushed hard
by their rivals at the group stage, and have shown two distinct sides of
their game: one with the ball, and one without.
Francisco Maturana, a member of FIFA's Technical Study Group identified this
dichotomy after Brazil's 2-2 with Japan in their final Group B game: "When
the (Japanese) players forgot about their opponents' illustrious past and put
in a very solid second-half performance, it was again highlighted just how
much the Brazilians struggle when they don't have control of the ball."
The first symptoms of the problem manifested themselves during Brazil's recent
trip to Argentina for a South American qualifier for Germany 2006. Carlos
Alberto Parreira's side arrived on a high after a consummate 4-1 victory
over Paraguay only days earlier in which the 'Fab Four' – Kaka, Ronaldinho,
Adriano and Robinho – cut swathes through the visiting defence.
Argentina coach Jose Pekerman packed his midfield with ball players, who
managed to keep the lion's share of possession in the first half. By the time
the visiting Brazilians got the measure of them, they were already three goals
down. The 3-1 final scoreline set alarm bells ringing for Parreira.
However, Brazil appeared to banish these doubts at the FIFA Confederations Cup
after hitting the ground running with a comprehensive 3-0 win over lacklustre
Greece in their opening game. With acres of space to run into, and no real
opposition to speak of in midfield, the Selecao once again looked at their
swashbuckling best. Not even Greece's below-par performance – they were the
only team that failed to score in this tournament – could take away from
Brazil's fine display.
Against Mexico, in their second game, Brazil showed only flashes of their
brilliance and consequently lacked penetration. With a simple tactical
masterstroke, Ricardo Lavolpe found a way to give the Brazilians possession
without giving any space to their midfielders or front men, who ended up
running up against an immovable Mexican rearguard. As a result, the CONCACAF
champions beat their CONMEBOL counterparts 1-0, after a disciplined defensive
display.
Perhaps the best illustration of the two sides of Brazil came in their draw
with Japan. After a sparkling first half that only lacked another couple of
Brazilian goals, their swagger seemed to desert them completely in the second
45 minutes when the Asian champions stopped being overawed and really took
the game to them.
The key to Japan's comeback was the fact that they controlled more of the
ball and wore out the Auriverde who expended a lot of energy trying to get
it back. Indeed, were it not for a brilliant save by Marcos to deny Japan
at the death, the outcome might have been completely different.
Looking ahead to Brazil's clash with Germany, the question on everyone’s
lips is: which Brazil will we see in Nuremberg? The one that dazzles
onlookers with precision and pace, or the one that seems bereft of ideas
when they do not have the ball? On Saturday 26 June, all will be revealed.
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總歸一句話...巴西最大的敵人是自己...
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