I must say that Argentina were the better side at the
Monumental stadium tonight. They toyed with the Brazilian defence in the first
half and I just can’t understand why they could not crush the Selecao. For a
moment, Imy frustrations knew no bound as I witnessed the Brazilian defence and
the likes of Neymar and Willian were found wanting. Both Neymar and Willian
hardly could dish out their club form against Argentina while I still don’t
understand why Ricardo Oliveira gets selected again and again in the team.
Thankfully, Carlos Dunga brought on Douglas Costa in the
second half by substituting Oliveira. Costa injected some rhythm in a clueless
and lackluster Brazil unit to produce a face-saving goal. Again, ignoring Lucas
Moura, Oscar and Coutinho was another exhibition of Dunga’s mind-boggling
selection.
I hate to say this, but tonight, two of Dunga’s favorite
players - Miranda and Elias played better than his teammates. Miranda covered
the defence and he received little support from a crazy David Luiz, who often
reminded me of Felipe Melo of 2010. What was Luiz up to tonight? You can be determined to build a rugged
defence , but rush-of-blood and childish acts have no place in the international
arena. A red card was the justified reward for Luiz and now, Dunga must summon
Thiago Silva to strengthen the back. But will Dunga summon Thiago?
Again, Elias supported Luiz Gustavo well who was more often
outclassed by Baniga in the midfield. Elias maintained the stability in the
midfield and tried to mask the poor display up front. Then at the left flank,
Felipe Luiz was made to look like a fool by the brilliant Angel Di Maria most
of the times, whereas at the right flank, Dani Alves was more productive.
Lucas Lima scored the goal and saved Dunga’s face, but
throughout the match he was less impressive. He had an impact on the match with
just a face-saving-goal otherwise, he was nothing but an irritating figure for
me.
Overall, Brazil lacked the ideal synchronization within
themselves. I would like to say that they were suffering a self doubt and not
sure what they should do.
Why were the Selecao not synchronous? I guess, the right players were not in the
right place. Yes, of course! How can you expect something fruitful from a
Neymar-Oliveira combination? How can you expect creativity without Oscar or
Coutinho? How can you expect fluency without the likes of Pato and Lucas Moura?
How can you expect safety at the back without Thiago Silva?
Yes, Dunga has been saved by a stroke of luck, but I repeat,
he should not be the coach of the Selecao.
Faisal Caesar
No comments:
Post a Comment