FIFA World Cup 2010 top news

Brazil team at World Cup 2010 in pictures


Brazilian soccer has been synonymous with the World Cup for decades. Having won two of the last four tournaments, and making the final in another, Brazil is the only country to have played in every World Cup final tournament.

Their five World Cup trophies stands alone as the most World Championships in international soccer history.

Even when their squads are injury depleted, or they haven't had their usual amount of international success, they are still always a contender on any international stage


We’re just 21 days away from the start of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. To celebrate, Footbalistic will look at one national team a day for the next 32 weekdays. Group by group and team by team, we will discuss team rosters, flaws and their chances of playing in the World Cup Final on July 11.

Group G


1. Brazil
2.Ivory Coast
3. North Kore
4. Portugal

Group G Schedule

June 15th: vs. North Korea (Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg)
June 20th: vs. Ivory Coast (Soccer City, Johannesburg)
June 25th: vs. Portugal (Moses Mabhida Stadium, Durban)





World Cup 2010: Brazil remain No 1 in Fifa rankings as Spain lie second
Brazil remained top of the latest Fifa rankings and will head to the World Cup as the tournament's No 1 team.


Brazil's World Cup record: 1930 1st rd, 1934 1st rd, 1938 3rd, 1950 RU, 1954 QF, 1958 Winners, 1962 Winners, 1966 1st rd, 1970 Winners, 1974 4th, 1978 3rd, 1982 2nd rd, 1986 QF, 1990 2nd rd, 1994 Winners, 1998 RU, 2002 Winners, 2006 QF.

How Brazil qualified for World Cup 2010: South American Group, 1st.


The Coach: Dunga (Brazilian, 46). Appointed: July 2006. WC experience: Player: 1990, 1994, 1998. Coach: None.

Dunga was considered as a replacement for Vanderlei Luxemburgo in 2000 but it was not for another six years until he took charge, replacing Carlos Alberto Parreira.

The Country: Brazil are joint favourites, with Spain, to win a sixth World Cup, not that surprising given their pedigree, history and ability to continually produce outstanding players. There is a saying in football that “The English invented it, the Brazilians perfected it” and few would argue.

The “Little Canary”, as they affectionately known, are the only team to have appeared in every World Cup finals and they made sure that record would continue in the best possible fashion, beating Argentina 3-1 in Rosario.

Two goals from striker Luis Fabiano and another from defender Luisao was enough as they inflicted only the second home defeat in World Cup qualifiers on Diego Maradona's struggling side.

But it was not all plain sailing. A 0-0 draw at home to Bolivia was a low point and then they were held by Colombia in the next home tie, prompting the fans to chant “Goodbye Dunga” again.

But a coach who worked in the media during the last World Cup finals is benefiting from the form of Kaka and Robinho. In Dunga they have a man who has won the World Cup, in 1994, while they have some of the world’s most talented players. He used no fewer than 39 players during the qualification process, and the belief is that Brazil have strength in depth ahead of South Africa.

Ronaldo, a World Cup winner in 1994 and 2002, was dropped by Dunga but remains optimistic, at the age of 33, that he could still feature in South Africa, though such a recall remains doubtful.


* FIFA World Cup:

o Winners (5): 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994, 2002
o Runners-up (2): 1950, 1998
o 3rd place (2): 1938, 1978
o 4th place (1): 1974


The fifth plays off for another place against the fourth team from the CONCACAF region.

Goalkeepers: Julio Cesar (Inter Milan), Gomes (Tottenham Hotspur), Victor (Gremio)

Defenders: Maicon (Inter Milan), Daniel Alves (Barcelona), Alex (Chelsea), Juan (AS Roma), Lucio (Bayern Munich), Luisao (Benfica), Kleber (Internacional), Andre Santos (Corinthians).

Midfielders: Anderson (Manchester United), Gilberto Silva (Panathinaikos), Josue (VfL Wolfsburg), Ramires (Cruzeiro), Elano (Manchester City), Felipe Melo (Fiorentina), Julio Baptista (AS Roma), Kaka (AC Milan)

Forwards: Alexandre Pato (AC Milan), Luis Fabiano (Sevilla), Nilmar (Internacional), Robinho (Manchester City).

World Cup 2010 Brazil Squad

Name

1. Heurelho da Silva Gomes
2. Júlio César Soares de Espíndola
3. Doniéber Alexander Marangon
4. Ânderson Luís da Silva
5. Juan Silveira dos Santos
6. Maicon Douglas Sisenando
7. Daniel Alves da Silva
8. Thiago Emiliano da Silva
9. Lucimar da Silva Ferreira
10. Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite
11. Gilberto da Silva Melo
12. Josué Anunciado de Oliveira
13. Ramires Santos do Nascimento
14. Felipe Melo de Carvalho
15. Júlio César Clement Baptista
16. Gilberto Aparecido da Silva
16. Michel Fernandes Bastos
17. Elano Ralph Blumer
18. José Kléberson Pereira
19. Róbson de Souza
20. Luís Fabiano Clemente
21. Edinaldo Batista Libânio
21. Nilmar Honorato da Silva


Brazil World Cup 2010 videos








How They Got Here:

First place in CONMEBOL

It might not be Joga Bonito, but it’s still dominant
No team has personified the beauty and joy of soccer quite like the Brazilian National Team. With a history of superstars attacking freely, the inventors of “The Beautiful Game” have no rival. But times have changed. After a team of attack-minded superstars was knocked out of the World Cup in 2006, the Selecao changed their tune under their disciplinarian of a coach, Dunga. If you want Joga Bonito, you may have to watch Spain play. This Brazilian team means business. And because of their new approach, they might be an even more dangerous than their past teams.

Attacking

Take the 2006 World Cup roster and throw it in the trash. There’s no Adriano, no Ronaldo and no Ronaldinho in this year’s squad. This does a couple of things for Brazil: They save money on food now that Adriano and Ronaldo are gone, and they save themselves from drama (and alcohol) if Ronaldinho were to make the trip. Whereas past Brazil squads have been free-flowing attack in the midfield (ala Spain), this one will rely more on counter-attacks. But still, this is Brazil we’re talking about. They’re not Greece. These guys are going to score goals. They still led South American qualifying with 33 goals in 18 matches, and 14 in five matches at last summer’s Confederations Cup.

Brazil is likely to play with just one forward up front and provided his return to fitness goes smoothly, it’ll be Sevilla’s Luis Fabiano. He was the top scorer at the Confederations Cup with five goals, and scored a whopping nine in CONMEBOL qualifying. And did I mention that his goal rate for Brazil (25 goals in 36 matches, .694) exceeds Ronaldo’s (62 in 97, .63)? He can also score in big matches. He scored in the 2006 UEFA Cup Final with Sevilla, two in the Confederations Cup Final and two in a big qualifier against Argentina. Noticably left off the squad are AC Milan’s Pato and Santos prodigy Neymar.

Fabiano will be supported by a plethora of attacking talent. Obviously, the name on everyone’s mind is Kaka. After signing his monstrous contract with Real Madrid, Kaka struggled through an injury-plagued season, scoring eight times in just 22 matches. But overlook him at your own peril. He still scored five times in qualifying and another two in the Confederations Cup. Remember when Ronaldo battled injuries for a couple of seasons before 2002, then proceeded to score eight times? Injury-plagued seasons can be forgotten very quick in the World Cup.

Robinho may represent the last of Brazil’s dying breed of Joga Bonito players. But given the season he had at Manchester City, that might be a good thing. He battled injury, and eventually moved back to Brazilian club Santos after being moved down the pecking order. Elano will help Robinho, Kaka and Fabiano in the midfield. One of the lesser known players in the XI, Elano is a wizard with a dead ball. He’s not too bad in the run of play, either.

Defense

There’s still elements of a very dangerous attack out of Brazil’s defense, but they’re pretty committed to the cause. For the first time in ages, they’re going to play with two holding midfielders. Most likely, those players will be 33-year-old Gilberto Silva and Felipe Melo, who was criticized for a poor season at Juventus.

One of the big storylines in Brazil’s defense has been the demotion of world-class fullback Dani Alves. Despite starring for Barcelona in their treble-winning season a year ago, Alves still finds himself coming off the bench under Dunga. Maicon is a staple of Brazil’s defense, but the other fullback to start the tournament might be Kleber. It’s a pretty scary thing to realize: Brazil’s best player at the club level probably won’t even start for them. How many other teams can say that?

The central defense will be airtight, as well. With captain Lucio and Thiago Silva presiding over the back line, they should thwart the attacks of their Group G opponents. You can’t have a counterattacking side without a great defense, and that’s exactly what Dunga has. This unit won’t have the breakdowns that led to their demise in 2006.

Outlook
Some Brazilian supporters see Joga Bonito as a Brazilian tradition that should never be done away with. But if there’s one thing Brazilians like more than beautiful play, it’s winning. Under Dunga, this team has gone from a bunch of divas in 2006 to a machine that won the 2007 Copa America, Confederations Cup and dominated South American qualifying. The names may be different, their tactics may be less stylish. But this is Brazil. A trip to Johannesburg on July 11 looks likely.


Prediction

Seven points in Group G
A win over Chile in the Round of 16
A win over the Netherlands in the Quarterfinals
A win over England in the Semifinals
A loss to Spain in the Finals