Tournament kicking into high gear
Club rebuilt to rely less on superstar Neymar, writes Bob Lenarduzzi.
C9-11
It’s all soccer all weekend, with four games on both days, as Russia 2018 kicks into high gear.
I’m sure some diehard fans will be up at 3 a.m. on Saturday to watch France play Australia, but for those who prefer to sleep in, Sunday’s late-morning match serves up a treat as Brazil opens its World Cup campaign against Switzerland.
Brazil has always been one of my favourite teams and is my pick to win this World Cup. Four years ago, Brazil was humiliated 7-1 by Germany, and the team has been on a mission to redeem itself ever since.
It took a while for the mission to get going, as former coach Dunga took over and did not enjoy success. Dunga was sacked two years ago and three-time Corinthians coach Tite was put in charge. Tite immediately turned the team around, as Brazil cruised through qualifying and is looking like a very settled and capable squad.
One of Tite’s objectives was to make Brazil less reliant on superstar Neymar. He seems to have achieved that goal, with wingers Philippe Coutinho and Willian combining well with young Manchester City forward Gabriel Jesus. Now that Neymar has recovered from injury, he is expected to play on the left, with Coutinho free to drop back into midfield.
As for midfield, Tite has three very good defensive players at his disposal. Real Madrid’s Casemiro has the key holding role, while Barcelona’s Paulinho and Manchester City’s Fernandinho are more box-to-box style. When needed, Tite can field all three in midfield, which makes Brazil a tough team to play against.
On defence, the squad has looked good, led by veteran Thiago Silva. However, the recent loss of right back Dani Alves to knee surgery leaves a big hole that is not easily filled.
It also leaves Brazil looking a bit lopsided in attack. Real left-back Marcelo, along with Coutinho and Neymar, seem much more dangerous than their counterparts on the right.
Brazil is the clear favourite in Group E, which also includes Serbia and Costa Rica. Serbia and Switzerland are solid European teams that did well in qualifying, while Costa Rica was very impressive at the last World Cup.
Switzerland is ranked sixth in the world according to FIFA, but I think that says more about FIFA’s questionable ranking system. The Swiss have some good players, but I’m still picking Brazil.