Mar 162018
 
The Other Brazilian Willian - Willian José

Recent weeks have seen the phrase “Who is Willian José?” searched on google many times. Courtesy of Chelsea’s fixture against Barcelona in the UEFA Champions League, the phrase got more wind. Even today, if you speak it in front of someone, the first thing that will come to their heads would be this quote from the Brazilian and Chelsea star Willian da Silva, more commonly known as Willian: “Jose is my friend but I am […]

Nov 142017
 
Some Friendly: Tite & Brazil's Modern Football Tour

There is no such thing as a friendly for the Brazil national team, or at least not for its hoards of fans around the world. Brazil don’t just play friendlies, they take part in the Brazil Global Tour: it’s got a sponsor and everything. No other team in the world has such fanfare attached to non-competitive games, but when these types of games were all they had to play during the build-up to their 2014 […]

Aug 012016
 
4 Brazilian Footballers To Look Out For At The 2016 Olympics

Brazil kick off their Olympic campaign on Thursday, against South Africa in Brasília. Under the stewardship of Rogerio Michale, this U-23 side (with Renato Augusto, Fernando Prass and Neymar thrown in for good measure) offers the first clean break from the turgid Dunga era. Rogerio’s squad is top heavy in terms of talent, with Grêmio’s Luan, Santos’ Gabriel Barbosa, Palmeiras’ Gabriel Jesús and Neymar all set to feature heavily. Rogerio has all but confirmed that […]

Jun 222016
 
Life Will Be No Beach for Tite - Brazil's New Manager

Tite will assume the reigns of the Seleção for the resumption of the World Cup qualifiers in August. He is a significant upgrade on Dunga, as a glance at the track record of the two coaches suggests. Tite is comfortably the best Brazilian coach around, albeit the bar has been exponentially lowered over the years by a poisonous coaching culture. Impatient club owners sack managers with impunity, then compound this vicious cycle by hiring from […]

Jun 102016
 
Brazil v Haiti: Seven One Again

For Brazilians, 7×1 is a scoreline that will always carry meaning. It was, of course, the scoreline of the trashing that Germany gave them in the 2014 World Cup. That match dashed the dreams of Brazil lifting the Cup on their home soil, and stained Brazilian football in a way which will never be washed clean. It wasn’t insignificant then, that on Wednesday night in Orlando, Brazil defeated Haiti by that same score in their […]

Jun 042016
 
Brazil in the Copa America 2016 - A Preview

The last time Brazil played a major tournament on American soil, they were crowned World Champions for the fourth time. This time, the story could be vastly different. Ironically enough, the stadium that hosted Brazil’s coronation in 1994, The Rose Bowl in Pasadena just outside Los Angeles, will host their debut in this year’s Copa América Centenario, which will take place Saturday against Ecuador. Brazil enter Saturday’s match a team in crisis. Manager Dunga has […]

May 282016
 
Expectations of Dunga's Brazil - Copa America 2016 Preview

On Saturday, 4th June, Brazil kick off their Copa América Centenário campaign against Ecuador in the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. The stadium holds happy memories for the Seleção and troubled coach Dunga as they lifted the World Cup in that very arena back in 1994. Dunga interpreted that triumph as an act of defiance against a hostile press, who had come to regard him as emblematic of Brazil’s transition from futêbol artistes to functional army. […]

Mar 252016
 
Thiago Silva and Dunga - Two Households Alike in Dignity

12th June, 2014. Brazil opens a World Cup as host for the first time in 64 years with a group match against Croatia. The Brazil team lines up arm in arm as the opening chords of the national anthem whir around Arena Corinthians. Before the opening lyrics are uttered, Neymar is pictured blinking back tears, as are several of his teammates – the emotion of the occasion producing an undevourable lump in their throats. Hulk, […]

Feb 292016
 
Copa America or Olympics? Brazil's Neymar Question

This summer, Brazil’s national team will participate in two international competitions deemed to be of utmost importance. First, in June, the full national team will participate in the Copa América Centenario in the United States. Then, in August, Brazil’s u-23 national team, plus three selected overage players, will participate in the Olympic Games football tournament which will be held throughout Brazil in venues that also hosted matches during the 2014 FIFA World Cup. The biggest […]

Feb 062016
 
Why Brazil Must Now Select China Based Players

  Anyone who has followed the goings on during this transfer window couldn’t have helped but notice the rise of Chinese football in the world scene. This window alone, Chinese sides have signed Jackson Martínez from Atlético Madrid, Fredy Guarín from Inter, Ramires from Chelsea, and Alex Teixeira from Shakhtar Donetsk. However, it wasn’t just European based players who took the plunge; accepting large swaths of money to move to China. Continuing a trend of […]