Romario e Seus Amigos

World Cup time again, perfect time to split up into Those Who Care and Those Who Don’t.   I’m sure you know which one you are.   

In the past I had a namorada brasileira (carioca orgulhosa) who got me into futebol.   We watched Brazil beat Germany 2-0 in the final in 2002, our comrades chanting PENTA CAMPEAO (five times World Cup champion) at the Summers in Arlington, first thing on that Saturday morning, followed by some street party in Adams Morgan.   From then on I’ve been watching and occasionally seeing the game in person, though I’ve yet to see any World Cup games in person.  I was not a fan in 1994 when the Cup occurred in the US. 

Flamengo vs. Fluminense, Maracana, February 2004.  The same day as the famous Janet Jackson Super Bowl which was actually between the Patriots (Tom Brady) and Panthers (Jack Delhomme).   Maracana is famous as the world’s largest soccer stadium and is in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.   We were in the lower deck – the upper deck was the insane fans.  One half in red & black chanting MEN-GO and the other half in dark green and maroon chanting NEN-SE.   Flamengo went ahead by 1, Fluminense scored three goals – game over, right?  Not so fast.  Flamengo came from behind to make it 4-3 MENGO.   Romario was playing for Fluminense in this game.

FYI, Brazil has a STATE of Rio de Janeiro, as well as the CITY of Rio de Janeiro.  Until Brasilia became the country’s capital in the late 1950s, RJ (as it’s called) was the country’s capital.  People from Rio are called cariocas.  The city has four major teams:  Flamengo (colors red & black, horizontal stripes), Fluminense (colors dark red, white, and dark green, in vertical stripes), Botafogo (colors black and white in vertical stripes, white star on black shield); and Vasco da Gama (colors white with black diagonal sash and red Maltese cross) (yes, the famous explorer).   I’ve been to the complexes of Flamengo and Botafogo.  What’s interesting about Brazilian teams is that the franchises also include teams of other sports, mainly basketball, volleyball, fencing, Magic: The Gathering, and martial arts - the UFC dudes are Brazilian, remember?  Imagine the Patriots having a baseball team, a basketball team and a hockey team. 

Brazli's national team, the Seleção (CBF), has been in every World Cup since 1950, and never failed to qualify.  It won the whole thing in 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994, and 2002, and as runner up in 1950 (lost to Uruguay) and 1998 (lost to France).  Its worst showing was exiting in group phase in 1966 (UK).  

   

Brazilian players love this “one name” deal, and here are some of the most popular.  Most start out with a famous Brazilian club, get famous and signed by top European teams, then wind down back home in Brazil.

Ronaldo (Ronaldo Luiz Nazario de Lima).    The original, from Brazil, not to be confused with Cristiano Ronaldo.   From Rio de Janeiro.  He played for major European teams Real Madrid, Barcelona, AC Milan and Inter Milan.  He started out with Cruzeiro (Belo Horizonte, Brazil) and ended with Corinthians (São Paulo, Brazil).   He scored both of 2 goals in the 2002 final against Germany.    

World Cup appearances for the Seleção (Brazilian National Team): 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010.  

  

Ronaldinho (Ronaldo de Assis Moreira).  Younger and darker skin, nowadays trying to marry two girls at once.  Originally from Porto Alegre, down south where Gisele Bundchen comes from.   Back when I was paying more attention he was playing for Paris St-Germain – Neymar’s current team – and then Barcelona.  I saw him play for the latter team in an exhibition game against AC Milan at RFK.  I recall he was on 2002 World Cup team.  He started with Gremio (southern Brazilian team), and went to Flamengo and Fluminense on his way back down.

World Cup appearances for the Seleção (Brazilian National Team): 2002, 2006, 2010. 

Rivaldo (Rivaldo Vitor Borba Ferreira).  From Recife, northeast Brazil.  Started out at Palmeiras (green team from São Paolo), then Barcelona and AC Milan, then back to São Paulo FC and São Caetano back in Brazil.  I remember him doing this “faking injury” BS which soccer players are so notorious for.

World Cup appearances for the Seleção (Brazilian National Team): 1994, 1998, 2002. 

Romario (Romario de Souza Faria).  Now in the Brazilian legislature, born in Rio de Janeiro, so he’s a true carioca.  Spent time at PSV Einhoven (Holland) and Barcelona.   Of the four RJ teams, Botafogo is the only one he never played for. 

World Cup appearances for the Seleção (Brazilian National Team): 1990, 1994, 1998.

Pele (Edson Arentes de Nascimento).   Famous from the 1958 and 1970 teams – I think he was injured in 1962.  He’s still famous and generally in the public eye.  Hasn’t run for president of Brazil…yet.   For a long time he was the only soccer player any American knew about.   Oddly, he stayed with Santos (São Paulo port city) team for his entire Brazilian career, then played briefly with the New York Cosmos in the late 70s to try get Americans to give a s**t about soccer. 

World Cup appearances for the Seleção (Brazilian National Team): 1958, 1962, 1970.

Garrincha (Manuel Francisco dos Santos).  Famous for playing for Botafogo.  Small and bowlegged with a remarkably complex and tragic social life, another one of these players as famous off the field as on it.

World Cup appearances for the Seleção (Brazilian National Team): 1958, 1962, 1966.

Zico (Arthur Antones Coimbra).   Most closely associated with Flamengo - and another carioca.  Pele considers him "second best" - guess who Pele considers the best?   Well esteemed though with the misfortune not to be associated with a World Cup winning national team.  
World Cup appearances for the Seleção (Brazilian National Team): 1978, 1982, 1986. 

Coming back to the present…

Neymar (Neymar da Silva Santos Junior).   A Paulista, he started with Santos (Pele’s team), signed with Barcelona, and is now with Paris St-Germain. 

World Cup appearances for the Seleção (Brazilian National Team): 2010, 2014, 2018.

Cristiano Ronaldo.   I’ll add him here just for clarification – because he’s Portuguese and not Brazilian.    The majority of his career has been with Manchester United and Real Madrid.  I have a few of his jerseys – including a purple Real Madrid I’m wearing right now.  

O Que Aconteceu? 2014

Back in 2006 I posted a blog about Brazil’s loss to France in the World Cup.  That game was in Germany, and France won by one goal, 1-0.  A heartbreak, sure, but not the stunner of 1998 or the abysmal loss this was – at home.

            Here’s my “autopsy”, so to speak, applying my own logic to the situation.

The (Not Quite So Beautiful) Game.  Germany went up 1-0…and soon a blitz of goals put the game at 5-0 at the half.  Brazil’s counterattack was non-existent, as was its defense.  In the second half, Germany piled on two more goals to make it 7-0, and finally Oscar scored a goal to prevent a complete shut-out, so the final tally was 7-1.

This was, by far, Brazil’s worst defeat ever.  The commentators noted that the stadium remained full despite the lopsided score, and speculated that the mostly Brazilian crowd was remaining out of “morbid curiosity.”

            So, what happened? (“O que aconteceu?”)  One word: NEYMAR.   Brazilian Coach Luis Felipe (Felipão = Big Phil) Scolari built the team around the Barcelona striker, and when his back was injured by Colombia in the prior game, it was not only game over for Neymar, but also the Brazilian team.  They really did NOT have a plan.  Did they have other talented players?  Yes.  But no one of his caliber.

            Argentina has the same “problem”, which is not an issue so long as Lionel Messi remains healthy and active.  If anything happened to him – Tanya Van Harding, with a collapsible baton, for instance – his team would be history.  Is it so hard to imagine a team anchored around a single player?   Not if you watch the NBA.  Not if you watch how poorly the Patriots and Colts played when Tom Brady and Peyton Manning were injured for entire seasons.  Every now and then an unknown QB steps out from the shadow of the starting but injured QB and rises to the occasion, like Brady himself.  But it’s not likely, and Brazil did not have the depth to survive Neymar’s departure.

            Contrast this with the German team.  Klose is a good veteran, Özil and Müller are also good (I have Müller’s 2010 jersey).  Neuer shines defending the goal, but the German team is far more evenly spread in terms of relative talents.  They don’t have a single irreplaceable player, no star who shines brighter than all the others.  

            Look at 2002, in which Brazil and Germany faced off in the final in Tokyo/Seoul.  The situation was reversed.  Brazil had the more balanced team; although Ronaldo (Brazilian variant) was clearly the star and scored both goals, Rivaldo and Ronaldinho also contributed heavily to the team’s success.  Germany, on the other hand, was anchored by its star, Michael Ballack (now a commentator for ESPN) and he was knocked out, like Thiago Silva, by a yellow card disqualification in the prior game against South Korea.

            Scolari himself countered that Neymar is a striker, not a defender, so his presence on the field would not have helped.  Much as I admire Big Phil – he did bring the trophy back in 2002 - I think he’s wrong here, for two big reasons.

            1.  Neymar’s presence on the field, by itself, inspired the rest of the team.  Messi does the same for Argentina, as Brady and Manning do.  The whole team plays better with him on the field.

            2.  So long as the opposing goalie is conscious, coherent, and competent, you cannot score from your side of the field.   A strong attack keeps the ball on the other team’s side.  Not only does this increase your chances of scoring, it also deprives the other team of the opportunity to try kicking the ball into your net.  The complete absence of any semblance of an offense then puts all the pressure on the defense, which was missing Thiago Silva.  Because – aside from the goalie – the players operate on both sides of the field whether attackers, midfielders or defenders, Neymar’s presence also improved Brazil’s defense as well as its offense.

            Factor that you probably need to take 10 shots at the goal to get one actual goal.   If you can keep pressure on the other team such that you make 20 shots and he can only make 5, chances are the score will be 2-0.  Though Germany’s percentage appeared to be MUCH higher in this game….

            Even if Neymar had played, I’d still have put the odds of a Brazilian victory at 50/50.  Brazil was underwhelming in the group phase and only beat Chile by penalties.  But a loss would have been 1-0 or 0-0 on penalties, not this 7-1 rout we saw.

Allow me to inject three instances of NFL disappointment – as a Minnesota Vikings fan.

1997-1998 Season.  The Vikings made it to the NFC Championship against the Atlanta Falcons.  Despite leading until the end of regulation, they missed a field goal and allowed the Falcons to push them into overtime.  I knew if that happened, the Falcons would win – and they did.

2000-2001 Season.  They get to the NFC Championship again, only to fall 41-0 to the New York Giants.  ??? Which team was this?  How does this happen?  This game, more so than these other two – which were actually close games – is what most closely approximates the sheer disbelief of the Brazil-Germany blowout. 

2008-2009 Season.  We finally get Brett Favre as QB.  He brings us all the way to the NFC Championship game again, this time against the New Orleans Saints.  We could have gone for a field goal.  But Favre had to throw that damn interception, and the Saints did the rest.  I know the Vikings could have beat the Colts, so this was a blown opportunity to get the first Super Bowl trophy.  And the next season was abysmal.

I’ll be rooting for Germany against Argentina, which in itself will be a rematch of the 1986 (Argentina) and 1990 (Germany) World Cups.   As a fan, my allegiances are to Brazil, Germany, and the US, in that order.  Sou Americano de verdade, ich weisse.  Since none of the current roster were playing on the German team in 1990, when they last won the World Cup – US coach Jurgen Klinsmann was on that team – this is their chance to get a victory for themselves.   This is particularly important for Klose, who played on the 2002, 2006, and 2010 teams and will almost certainly not play in 2018.

Hope for 2018?  Neymar is young, he can recover and fight again in Russia.  I’m most optimistic for the US team, though.  Klinsmann had the same problem as Scolari: a key striker – Altidore – suddenly knocked out.  But Dempsey was strong enough to pick up the slack.  Had Altidore not been injured, the US might have tied Germany, beat Belgium, and conceivably gone neck-and-neck with Argentina.  Look at Julian Green, who scored the US’ only goal against Belgium coming off the bench late in the game in his first appearance.  He plays for Bayern Munich, Germany’s top team!  Altidore will be 29, not too old for ’18, though Dempsey will be 35; the big problem is goalie Tim Howard.  For the US to emerge from its group at all, much less missing Altidore, is amazing.  Moreover, more US players are getting experience either overseas on top tier European teams, or in an MLS which is upping its roster with more experienced Europeans.  Beckham was at the Galaxy, Thierry Henry is with the NY Red Bulls, and Kaka will be joining the Orlando expansion franchise.  The irony is that America has more reason to be proud of its own team – which only lost to Germany by one goal – than Brazil has to be proud of this year’s Seleção, even if it was just Neymar’s bad luck to be injured.   Brazil survived its loss to Uruguay in 1950 to win in 1958, and its loss to France in 1998 to come back and win in 2002.  Let’s see if they can do it again in 2018.