olympic football - Dhaka Mirror

Gold eludes Brazil again

Admin — Sat, 11 Aug 2012 20:42:23 +0000

London Olympics 2012
Gold eludes Brazil again
Romario couldn’t do it, Bebeto couldn’t do it, Rivaldo couldn’t do it, Ronaldinho couldn’t do it. Neither could Brazil’s latest poster boy Neymar. The weight of history proved far too much for Mano Menezes’s young Selecao and their dreams of Olympic gold crumpled to dust on the picture-perfect Wembley turf on Saturday.
Mexico were their latest conquerors, as two goals from the dynamic Oribe Peralta saw them coast to a 2-1 win at the home of football. It also provided a re-run of football’s oldest narrative; that collective discipline beats individualism every time.
For Brazil, the galling part was that both goals came from largely avoidable errors. The first, after just 25 seconds, came after the Manchester United right-back Rafael was caught in possession by Javier Aquino and the ball broke for Peralta to send an emphatic finish inside Gabriel’s near post. It was the fastest goal in Olympic history and the fastest ever in the final of a FIFA tournament.
The second goal after 75 minutes, saw the Brazilians leave Peralta inexplicably unmarked from a set-piece to place a header into the bottom corner of the net.
By then though, they game was almost over.
Brazil, looking uncharacteristically uninspired had struggled to employ any measure of control on the game throughout. They were not helped by the head-scratching tactic of Menezes of employing the defensive minded Alex Sandro in place of Hulk in the starting line-up. It seemed neither Menezes nor Sandro was sure of what the latter’s role in the line-up was as he was consistently shuffled either left or right after Menezes finally corrected his error following a painful half-hour in which Brazil failed to muster a single effort on goal.
The newly-introduced Hulk soon remedied that statistic with a pile-driver from range that the Mexico goalkeeper Jose Corona did well to keep out. But that was the one bright spot in an insipid Brazil display in the first half.
The South Americans showed signs of life early in the second half but despite some good probing by Oscar and Neymar, there really was no finishing quality to the approach play. The Santos star missed the most presentable opportunity when he side-footed over the bar after the ball had broken to him inside the box.
Mexico though, were always threatening on the break and were unlucky not to grab a goal when Marco Fabian only managed to hit the bar after being set clean through on goal from another defensive lapse. But Mexico need not have worried because moments later and from a soft free-kick Peralta made sure that the El Tri would crown an emerging nation of talented footballers with the gold.
For Brazil, Hulk’s goal at the end and the silver medal will provide scant consolation for a performance lacking in vigour, belief or fantasy; three of many qualities that had made them such a name to be reckoned with in the past.
The serial champions of Brazil have not won a title in three years, and even that was the Confederations Cup. Their last title of any significance was the Copa America in 2007 and the pressure will indeed intensify on Mano Menezes, who was tasked with the responsibility of building a Brazil side capable of winning the World Cup at home in 2014.
Not all is wrong however, and using just this final as evidence of an inquest into the state of Brazilian football would be a knee-jerk reaction. Indeed, it had all started so promisingly for Brazil, as their exuberant attacking play throughout the Olympics had won them many admirers across the breadth of Great Britain. London, then was supposed to be their crowning glory, the final denouncement in a play that had seen their other great challengers, Spain and Uruguay fall by the wayside early. The stage it seemed was set for Brazil to finally win the one trophy that still eludes them.
But Mexico were not to be written off. Their recent titles in youth level showcase a team who show grit to go with their flair and on Saturday at Wembley they showcased exactly that, proving far more astute tactically than the naïve Brazilians.
The South American’s take the Olympics seriously, so much so that the great Ronaldo was famously asked just moments after the World Cup triumph in Asia in 2002 whether he would be leading the side into the Athens Games in 2004.
There comes a time for every nation when the past stops being an inspiration and starts to become a burden. For the Brazilian’s their failure in London would suggest that the Olympics seem to have reached that stage already.

-With The Daily Star input

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Mexico-Brazil final a pointer to the future?

Admin — Thu, 09 Aug 2012 17:04:34 +0000

Deep inside the Wembley Stadium on Tuesday, following Mexico’s comprehensive victory over Japan in the Olympic semifinals, a group of journalists were working while the TV beamed images from Old Trafford. Brazil had looked streaky at the start, as they cleared two South Korean attacks off the line but just as they scored their second goal through the prolific forward Leandro Damaio, the journalist lent over to his colleague and said something that could yet be prophetic.
“I have a bad feeling,” he said, “that Mexico and Brazil could be a preview of the World Cup final of 2014.”
On face value these words sound fantastical, but taking a moment to think about it, you will be forced to consider that it isn’t really as wondrous as it sounds. Brazil may not be the world beating side of the late 90s or the early noughties but in this group have a core of players, led by the outstanding Neymar, who look like they will be challenging for honours in 2014. Plus, the World Cup is at home. There never really will be a better chance.
Mexico though, represents an altogether different challenge. The North Americans have long played the game with the flair of the South Americans, but while they are always an attractive side to watch, it seems they lack the strength required to progress beyond the last 16 in international competitions. In both of the last two World Cups, the Mexicans have promised much before bowing out at that stage to Argentina.
It was exactly the character that many say they lack that they showed yesterday at Wembley against another interesting side, Japan. Professional football only came to Japan in the early 90s but already the East Asian nation are producing players of superb technical ability. Shiniji Kagawa and Shunsuke Nakamura are probably their best-known names but neither featured in this squad. Instead, it was left to other players, like the inventive forward Yuki Otsu, who plays his football for German Bundesliga side Borussia Monchengladbach.
On Tuesday, Otsu scored a stunning goal, hitting home on the half-volley from outside the box to give Japan the lead. It wasn’t one they managed to hold on to though, as the Mexicans began to show the gritty qualities they have fostered over the past few years.
First, Marco Fabian headed in a corner to give Mexico a hardly deserved equaliser. Then it was left to Oribe Peralta, first to score with a stunning swerving effort before setting up the next with a nifty back-heel. It sounds simple but till that point, Japan had not conceded a single goal the whole tournament.
You can rest assured that Mexico’s new-found grit will be tested to the full against Brazil in the final. But you sense there is a new found belief within the ranks of the Mexicans. The feeling is that with two Under-17 World Cups in the last seven years, a good performance in the U-20 World Cup last year (where they only bowed out to Brazil in the semifinals) and the Gold Cup victory that Mexico is now producing players that have the mettle required to win big international tournaments.
More importantly, the pressure will be off, completely. The Olympics have become an albatross around the neck for Brazil and despite clearly possessing a technically superior team on paper, the weight of expectations will definitely weigh on the Selecao. Don’t count out Mexico exploiting that to sneak a surprise victory. And if not, there might still be 2014.

-With The Daily Star input

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Quirkiness the charm of Olympic football

Admin — Mon, 30 Jul 2012 22:14:38 +0000

“He is a lizard,” spits the beefy gentleman sitting a few rows over from the press tribunes. It’s a cold, wet summer afternoon at an almost full Wembley, and the atmosphere is surprisingly raucous at the home of football. Mexican waves do the business and boos ring out every time a wiry player in a blue shirt gets a touch of the ball. The player is Luis Suarez.
The Liverpool forward is a much-hated figure ever since his racist bust-up with Patrice Evra and it seems the people don’t seem to care who he turns up for; they have decided to root against him and his team.
This is surprising because Uruguay is perhaps the best team on show in this Olympics football. Aside from Suarez, they have the Napoli forward Edinson Cavani, the gifted Bologna playmaker Gaston Ramirez and the big Liverpool defender Sebastian Coates.
It is clear that Uruguay take their Olympics football seriously; not for nothing is their full team still called the Celeste Olimpica, a name earned after their double Olympic triumphs that pre-dated their World Cup wins. Uruguay then have a storied history in Olympic football, a tournament which is strangely charming in its very nature. How else would you describe a showpiece that Brazil have never won, yet Hungary have won thrice?
Sadly, football in the Olympics remains the poorer cousin to the World Cup. There is only a sprinkling of superstars in this tournament — the Brazilian Neymar and the combined Great Britain team’s Ryan Giggs chief among them. Yet this edition’s tournament is crammed with subplots: can Brazil finally win the last football trophy that still eludes them? Can Great Britain put England to shame by medalling? Might Uruguay’s current golden generation nab the prize that first made the country’s name?
The reason for the beguiling charm surrounding Olympics football can probably be traced back to its roots. Take for instance Paris 1924, where the Swiss team reached the final and then planned to go home without playing it.
Apparently, their 10-day rail passes, bought when the Games began, expired before the match. Luckily, the Zurich newspaper Sport organised a collection for new tickets, though with hindsight it needn’t have bothered: the Swiss lost the final 3-0 to Uruguay.
That final though was watched by 60,000 people with many more queued outside waiting to be let in. The South Americans found this a chance too good to let pass and following their win, the government issued embossed stamps with the words “Uruguay Campeon de Football.”
Watching this current edition of the Uruguayans at Wembley on Sunday, it was harder to believe that they would be able to pull this title out of the bag. After a scrappy win in their first game against UAE, they managed to collapse to Senegal’s rag-tag bunch of Olympians. Little known Moussa Konate scored twice. He turns out in the Israeli league for Maccabi. Their best-known player is Mohamed Diame, who turns out for Wigan Athletic in the Premier League.
It would however be foolish to count out the Senegalese.
Something similar was done to the Nigerian side in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. Arriving at the Games in financial chaos, they stayed at hostels and motels, and ate brunches at run-down Chinese places. Their Dutch coach, Jo Bonfrere paid for most of their meals out of his own pocket. Yet, they won gold and en route beat a Brazil team containing Rivaldo in the semifinal. Nwankwo Kanu, who scored the winner in that game, called it “the most beautiful moment of my life.”
The element of strangeness looks set to continue in this edition.
After Senegal’s 10-man side saw off Uruguay yesterday, UAE were at one point equalised with Team GB. But although the combined British team pulled back to win comfortably, the tournament had already lost its best team on Sunday. World and double European champions Spain bowed out after two consecutive defeats, to Japan and Honduras.
Here is to unpredictability.

-With The Daily Star input

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