World

South America

Brazil

Today, the Country Will Stop

June 13th, 2006 | By: Zé Fernando | 32 Comments »

My street So that’s it. Today’s the day. Today Brazil will finally step on a German stadium for a World Cup match, when they have to play their first group F game against Croatia. No more innocuous news, no more blister drama; now it’s all about football.

Back here in Brazil, the long tradition of painting the streets with the team colors is back at full speed; flags are being used on cars, houses, trucks, bicycles and basically all kinds of commercial stablishments, from shops to fuel stations. Today’s the day everybody start to believe and support the hexa dream, and the day we will finally see the team having to play a real match after so much time.

Today the country will stop - for example, in my city São Paulo, you will never find the streets so empty as during a World Cup match. Seriously. You can be on a given street at any time in the morning and there will be cars and people around. If you’re there during a World Cup match, however, the street will be so dead you could run around naked and people wouldn’t even notice (unless it’s a street with a bar or a big screen with the game on - in that case you’ll see so many people you’d think the country is hosting the World Cup). It’s a pretty surreal sight. This shows how much the nation cares about the World Cup - it’s the only thing that makes it really stop.

However, although many people agree that Brazil is one of the favorite teams, most also believe that the hype has reach a critical state. Like Parreira said, no team is a favorite anymore once the World Cup starts, and Brazil has a lot to prove inside the pitch. Yesterday Zé Roberto was pretty anxious about hearing Australia had beaten Japan, asking reporters whether it was true or not that Australia had scored 3 goals in five minutes. A couple of the Seleção players did mention they’re pretty tired of training while other teams are playing and winning already, and that their debut match couldn’t come soon enough. Thankfully, it seems most of the hype has been kept outside and the oba-oba hasn’t reached the team. That’s all I hope for.

If anything, we have a lot of questions about Brazil right now. Brazil does have many of the best players in the world, but does that make the better team? Is the Ronaldinho Gaúcho we’ll see the same Ronaldinho Gaúcho who played on Barcelona? Are our team’s defense mistakes fixed? Will Cafu perform like a 20 year old runner (like he did during training matches) or will he get tired too soon? Is Ronaldo fit for long matches, or will he be substituted by Robinho on the second half? Will we get the chance to see Juninho Pernambucano’s perfect free kicks? Will the team start in full swing and walk over Croatia, or will it have to start slowly and gain confidence during the group stages, like it did on 2002? Can we actually be considered favorites, after having only beaten poor teams in the past few months? Will Zagallo’s lucky number 13 mean luck once again? Are we living a daydream, a clever plot created by Argentina and Germany to make us think we’re the favorites while they’re keeping a low profile and they’re the actual contenders? Or is the hexa inevitable? Or even still, like Daryl said on the match preview, with so much hype surrounding a group of players, how can any team live up to expectations?

Hopefully, most of these questions will be answered during the 90 minutes of their first match. I’m confident the team is pretty good, but just how good remains to be seen.

Brazil’s blog main man Euler will be playing at the Sugar Loaf at Rio de Janeiro with his band after the match - I actually can’t think of a better place to watch the game and I’m pretty jealous of him. Such is life. Ideally, I would go to a bar with friends so we could drink and watch the games while we made jokes about Argentina, but today I won’t have such luck - I’ll be watching the game from school as I have an important paper due to deliver today (really, that’s totally crazy). Hopefully I’ll have some pictures to share as some of my fellow cursed students also stop to watch the game on a big screen set up at our campus. If you’re stuck somewhere near a computer and can’t stop to watch the TV while cursing at the referee, be sure to follow WorldCupBlog’s LibeBlog for the game.

Tags: no tags

Brazil World Cup RSS Feed

del.icio.us:Today, the Country Will Stop

stumbleupon:Today, the Country Will Stop

Comments

Displaying the most recent 25 comments from a total of 32 comments.

Read the rest of the comments

By Philip | June 13th, 2006 at 8:36 pm

Without Brasil, my WC would be too depressing to contemplate….

But life is good, i’ve got the audio from Rádio Eldorado who I think has the games, right? And I’m trying to get video via TVU…. life is good again.

Posted from United States

By Total Football | June 13th, 2006 at 9:09 pm

Croatia gets its first corner: it’s through these set plays that it has a chance. But we’re seeing Brazil playing the break-away, with terrific, instinctive passing all the way to a shot on goal that sailed high. Great pace, beautiful two out of two touches for Ronaldinho. The Croats on the other hand are unbowed: they’ve come out to play (and as always to shove and thump).

Posted from United States

By ashley | June 13th, 2006 at 10:04 pm

NO DOUBT…BRAZILS GONNA WIN!!!

Posted from United States

By Total Football | June 13th, 2006 at 10:16 pm

And another Croat attack that forces a smothering save by the Brazilian keeper. Croatian fans are starting to sing like Mets fans in 1969. They’re noticing the virtual absence of Ronaldo, except as a spolier of Brazilian rythm, and they’re probing the Brazilian keeper enough to make Brazil think twice about playing the instinctively forward game it prefers. The 1-0 lead is looking more tenuous than when the Brazilian left the field at the half. Wait! Ronaldo just unleashed his first Hail Mary toward goal, and it was just short of grace. He may not be full of grease after all.

Posted from United States

By Total Football | June 13th, 2006 at 10:32 pm

Brazil is against the ropes here, Croatia managing attack after attack, one that just skimmed past the keeper on a save by one of the defender, another one just now that was shot high over the crossbar: “We believe, we believe” in Croatian? And again! A cross into the Bra box, a dive for a header but the ball is sloughed off by a Bra boot. And finally, Ronaldo is taken out. The dark energy has left the field. The neutrons are gone. The zero-sum game is finished. The Babe-Ruth-near-retirement has gone to Florida. Let’s see some action now. But no, instead we get another Croatian attack, and a shot on goal forcing yet another save. An odd way to play a 1-0 game, from the ropes, for Brazil.

Posted from United States

By Total Football | June 13th, 2006 at 10:42 pm

For a first game not a bad performance on Brazil’s part but not awe-inspiring either. Brazil took the field knowing this would be its toughest test in an easy draw: Japan and Australia cannot possibly put up much of a fight, and you could sense that the Braz were holding back from unsnapping and revealing their bounties entirely. A bit disappointing for us, but if the score holds, it’s still a victory against one of Europe’s tougher teams, in Europe. The worry, of course, is Ronaqldo, whose cup size has gone from runneth over to double z, for snooz.

Posted from United States

By Total Football | June 13th, 2006 at 10:53 pm

Nice run there, but not the overwhelming display of power we expected from Brazil. Croatia has a strong defense, but Brazil was also short of ideas on more than one occasion. It wasn’t all Ronaldo’s fault. They have a bit of work to do if they’re to get back to their bounties–and our joys.

Posted from United States

By harry | June 13th, 2006 at 10:55 pm

What is the problem with Ronaldo? He looked fat and could barely run.

Of course Brazil looked very talented, not a surprise, but from just these first games it seems either Argentina, Holland, Czech Republic or maybe even Mexico or Germany could beat them.

Posted from United States

By Philip | June 13th, 2006 at 10:56 pm

Not a great performance, but this should be the toughest opponent of the group. And after my trauma of yesterday I’m plenty happy about a 1-0 win.

Posted from United States

By Dudes | June 13th, 2006 at 11:07 pm

me n’ my friends are cheerin 4 Brazil all the way!! Go kick some USA ass!! please!!

Posted from Canada

By persian | June 13th, 2006 at 11:08 pm

robinho is gonna start. Ronaldo played w/o much energy. Robinho was everywhere and ronaldo just walked around. When robinho came in brazil had better shots at goal and more energy

Posted from United States

By Philip | June 13th, 2006 at 11:11 pm

Dudes,

You must be talking about 2010 (if the US qualifies)…. The US has two games left, and neither one is against Brasil.

By Alrod | June 13th, 2006 at 11:12 pm

A very worrysome performance from Brazil. Croatia was simply unlucky otherwise we would be dealing with shame right now. What is with Ronaldo? Strolls onto the field after half time like an old man on a Sunday afternoon stroll in the park to watch a game of pick-up soccer. I have to question the coach for his tolerance. Ronaldo is beginbing to remind me of Romario towards the end of his international carreer. We skated to a narrow win over a team that was not as strong as billed. What if this was Italy or Germany. Ronaldo looks worse than ever—fat, lazy and uninspired!

Posted from United States

By Pugnate | June 13th, 2006 at 11:58 pm

Philip I think he isn’t talking about football. Maybe he wants Brazil to invade?

Posted from Pakistan

By sapho | June 14th, 2006 at 12:37 am

a cautious game from brazil

Posted from United States

By stacy-marie | June 14th, 2006 at 12:57 am

Great post, hope the paper went well - and hope to see you in the second round

Posted from United Kingdom

By LiverpoolFC | June 14th, 2006 at 3:06 am

Brazil better be worried on that form probably the easiest group match for them. Expect both Japan and Australia to give them more of a run for their money. They struggled with Japan on their last match with the samurai and against australia, I wouldn’t want to see this tape if I were Brazil.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1acZtesWHY&search=Socceroos

Posted from Australia

By benz | June 14th, 2006 at 3:28 am

brazil gonna win for sure the world cup !!!!!!!

Posted from Canada

By manrazie | June 14th, 2006 at 3:39 am

If brazil could not change their style of playing,they will be beaten easily by Argentina,Germany Italy or England..Ronaldo should not be in the team from the start,Ronaldinho was showing off too much..that’s not what we expect from brazil..they were playing lazy football,not like they used to do..

Posted from Malaysia

By fira | June 14th, 2006 at 10:50 am

Viva Brasil…q pais mais maravilhoso. Hope to see brasil to be the champion again in this big world event, 2006.

Posted from Indonesia

By Alrod | June 16th, 2006 at 9:32 am

The facts are clear. Ronaldo is not the same, or so it seems. Let us also consider the tactical facts of the game. It takes 15 men to win a soccer match (11 on the pitch, 3 reserves and the coach) Having said that, we must examine the mind of Parriera. He is not coach because of his experience on the field, he is a master strategist.
He opted to have the team train under carnival situations where it would be similar to the actual games, a lot of distractions and noise. He opted to play against 2nd string teams in freindlies. He is talking about an attacking game but defense is his core. Having an unfit Ronaldo on the field against Croatia is a ploy to disract the opposition. If u watch the game, no one really wanted to target Ronaldo. It is almost as if they deliberatly avoided Ronaldo who was probably told to hold back. This gave Adriano and Kaka the room to float around while Ronaldo and Ronaldinho were marked heavily. I do not doubt Parriera’s strategy. I just hope it does not back-fire.

Posted from United States

By Euler | June 17th, 2006 at 7:15 am

Great post, man. I would love to see your pictures, Zé! I’ll post some of the streets of Rio really soon!

By FIFAworldcup.com - The Un Official Site of Fifa World Cup 2006 | June 17th, 2006 at 9:15 am

Ronaldo Makes Me Sick

I cannot believe how a talent like Ronaldo would show up overweight in the greatest sporting event in the world. The 1996, 1997 and 2002 World Footballer of the Year was a disgrace in the first game against Croatia with Kaka providing the only goal fo…

Posted from United States

By julia | June 18th, 2006 at 4:59 am

BRAZIL IS GONNA WIN , BRAZIL HAS ALL THE GOODS PLAYERS….

BRAZILL

Posted from United States

By Zagona | February 8th, 2008 at 11:12 pm

Brazil World Cup Team : Natural, skillfull,instinctive.
The Elite in World Soccer.
The Total Champions.
Good luck to Iraq and China. They should qualify.
Australia? Lets be fare, they are still learning and have a few players gaining needed experience from the Professional English teams.
Don’t expect them to go through “INTO” the next World Cup.
No stipes yet for them.

Comments are closed