So, we’ve had this debate before. Still, the result, Netherlands 2-1 over Brazil, will fuel the fire of the torch wielding “joga bonito acolytes,” screaming about the exclusion of Ronaldinho and Pato and hundreds of other Brazilians that can pull off an elastico with ease. After all, Dunga’s reliance on results and the discourse of efficiency to justify his team selection collapses into one currency by which to measure success – wins. Not goals. Not style. Wins. And today, Brazil lost.
However, this was not a case of the swashbuckling jogabonito Dutch vs. the boring Brazilians. The Holland on display fielded three central midfielders, Schneijder, Von Bommel, and De Jongo, two of which are more janitorial than artistic. Up front, Van Persie found himself isolated as Kuyt’s chronic lack of pace and Robben’s left leaning proclivities starved him of quality service. Did Gio overlap Robben even one time during the course of the game? Cruyff’s total football is dead. Long live the Cruyff.
So, if we cannot fault for philosophical impurity when facing an equal evil, what can we say? Well, Felipe Melo had a terrible season at Juventus and Gilberto is on the wrong side of 30. Was this truly the rock solid center around which to construct a team? Of course, Elano’s injury and Ramirales’ suspension deprived Melo & Gilberto of a reliable sidekick, but Von Bommel and Schneijder recently faced off in the Champions League final. Comparatively, Melo lost to a miraculous Fulham in the Europea league quarterfinals and Gilberto took the Orient Express East across the Mediterranean a few years ago.
We could also play the Brazilian keeper blame game, a historical favorite and emotional crutch of a nation. If only Cesar had been stronger in the air, then Melo’s indecision would have meant little. Just like four years ago, a clever setpiece bamboozled the Brazilian backline for the winning goal. This time, instead of Roberto Carlos adjusting his sock, Juan and Lucio bit on the Kuyt header, allowing the elusive Schneijder to head freely from five yards.
Yet these two moments underscore a larger problem – the lack of clear cut chances by Brazil. Kaka, Robinho, and Fabiano rarely combined, their heels, flicks, and feints smothered in a sea of orange. Kuyt hustled and bustled to neutralize Maicon, and suddenly the lack of a Plan B became apparent. Nilmar and Gilberto Melo are good players, but not game changers. The cries for Pato and Ronnie fell on deaf ears.
Still, Dunga is the loneliest man in the world today. His Brazilian team, built on European organization and discipline, failed to out-European a well disciplined and disciplined European side. In a tense game of few clear cut chances, one can watch the replays over and over again with no clue as to who will win or who should have won. The game was not a game in any sense of the world, but more of a mixed arm wrestling – staring contest.
If Kaka had kept his sole shot low, the streets of Rio would be filled with samba dancing fans draped in green and yellow. But Brazil blinked first.
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