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A to Z of WORLD CUP SOUTH AFRICA 2010 - Brazil
BRAZIL:
Mention the World Cup and the country most likely to spring to mind is Brazil. This is hardly surprising as they are the only country to have appeared in every World Cup Finals tournament to date. In addition they hold the record of 5 victories in the final, starting with the ‘Pele Final’ in Sweden in 1958: a 5-2 victory over the host nation in Stockholm set the ball rolling. They retained their title in 1962 when they defeated Czechoslovakia 3-1 in Chile. A hat trick was prevented in 1966 when England achieved their only win to date! ‘Normal service’ was resumed in 1970 when Italy were hammered 4-1. This third World Cup success was followed by a relatively barren period until 1994 when a penalty shoot-out with Italy saw them emerge victorious 3-2. They again made the final in 1998 but were comprehensively beaten 3-0 by the host nation France. A return to winning ways came in 2002 when they defeated Germany 2-0 as the tournament made its first foray into Asia.
The current team finished top of the South American qualifying group, losing only 2 of the 18 matches played ( W9, D7 ). Qualification to South Africa was ensured via a 3-1 win over Argentina in their final match. The manager is Carlos Caetano Bledorn Verri, known, thankfully, as Dunga! He played 91 times for Brazil, scoring 6 goals as a defensive midfielder. He captained the side to victory in 1994 and to the runner-up spot in 1998. Despite various fallings out with the Brazil FA, he was appointed manager in July 2006 and will coach the side in this year’s Finals.
The success enjoyed by Brazil down the years has inevitably stemmed from the array of talent at the disposal of successive managers. The current squad are no exception: Kaka, Dani Alves, Louis Fabiano, Robinho …. the names all trip off the tongue ( in their shortened version that is ! ). One notable omission from this list is AC Milan’s Ronaldinho whose loss of club form has also seen him lose his place in the national squad. There remains a question mark over his ability/desire to make the final selection for South Africa.
No such problems await Louis Fabiano, currently plying his trade for Sevilla in Spain. He made his international debut in 2003 and to date has a remarkable 25 goals in 36 appearances. Not surprisingly he is quoted at 12/1 by Victor Chandler to be the tournament’s top scorer come July 11th. Kaka, of Barcelona and record-breaking transfer fame, can be had at attractive odds of 33/1 with Betfred for the top-scoring spot. Manchester City’s ( currently! ) Robinho is priced at 40/1 with Stan James for the same title, a reflection no doubt of his less-than-impressive form at Eastlands. All of this attacking talent is boosted by the solidity of centre-back and captain Lucio who has 88 caps to his name. Commentators around the world will be hoping that Giovanildo Vieira da Silva ( charmingly nicknamed ‘Hulk’ by no less a person than his Mum !) gets the nod from Dunga.
Brazil have been drawn in Group G alongside Ivory Coast, Portugal and North Korea. Some see this as the nearest to the ‘Group of Death’ when the draw was made last December. Brazil are 4/6 with Paddy Power to win this Group and a slightly attractive 10/3 with Skybet NOT to progress to the last 16. On the basis that you don’t believe in miracles/catastrophes and they do make it to the quarter-finals, Totesport are offering odds of 4/1 on Brazil’s elimination then, whilst Paddy Power go for the same odds but at the semi-final stage. Finally Boylesports have them at 11/2, second favourites behind Spain, to lift the World Cup on July 11th.
Posted: Sunday, January 10th, 2010 @ 09:01 am by Mark
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