When talking about soccer, there is no greater pleasure than watching your nation’s main squad win. I was elated by noticing how Brazilian players dominated France in their latest friendly match. They are preparing for the Confederations Cup (which begins in June 15), and also for next year’s World Cup – both events to happen in Brazilian soil. This means that many people will be cheering for our squad, or maybe criticizing it. What worries me is that, for a team used to be in the spotlight, our athletes are not corresponding to people’s expectations.
The squad’s cornerstone – Neymar – has just been sold to Barcelona for the incredibly large amount of 57 million euros. He may have succeeded in playing next to global stars like Messi and Xavi, but he still tries to prove himself as the ultimate scorer for his native country. However, low-level performances prevent him from leading his mates throughout the path to victory. Additionally, it can be said that the former Santos’s player cannot even rely on his abilities, as he frequently misses opportunities to score when face-to-face with goalkeepers. This scenario jeopardizes his role as the best Brazilian player of contemporaneity, and affects other footballers who are inspired by him.
The team’s coach, Luiz Felipe Scolari (a.k.a. Big Phil), has taken the responsibility to readily organize everything, obviously before FIFA’s 2014 tournament. In order to accomplish his mission, Scolari chose new players, who were supposed to provide technical features that, albeit necessary, were lacking in his selected line-up. The result? Our national soccer squad might be a little more skilful, and yet its members are not familiar with the concept of teamwork. We can only see lone-wolf moves, because there is almost no integration between players. I believe it is not needed to explain what should happen to people who cannot turn their individual efforts into a collective one.
The necessity to win next year’s championship is a general consensus. Brazil was defeated at a World Cup final – inside its own borders – by Uruguay, in 1950. The egregious loss has left scars that are still present in many people’s minds. Therefore, losing again, in spite of the benefit of intense home support, is not an option. The achievement of a World Cup is not easy, but it is not impossible either. In my opinion, we do have great players who can be victorious in 2014, for instance: Oscar, Lucas, Marcelo, Fred, and even Neymar. All of them are good at what they do for a living. Nevertheless, they would be better if they could gather their knowledge of soccer into a single, tightly knit group. This way, they can make sure that Brazilian professional football will be, one more time, like in its heyday.
Originally published on thimabi.wordpress.com.