Women`s Friendly International Matches 2011 [R]

Well, I kinda view Mexico as on the rise and Brazil as on the decline, so you might expect their results to be up and down until the team settles.... but that's still pretty ridiculous.

 

Again, Marta was pushed back into the MF to control position. Debora was one of the forwards . I saw the previous game, not Mexico. Played with Cristie and other young forward combo. No Bruna or Thalia on the backline. He played with Erika in the attack a bit, which should have been done years. Now, she needs time to get up to speed.

Anyway, the talent is still too great even with varying line ups per game to drop a game to Mexico. I look at this as Japan finally beating the USA after 20 tries. Mexico was due one.

I'm not sure I saw Formiga on the field. And they ran Daiana a bit as a sweeper again.

 

If Mexico had dominated the match, I'd be concerned but that wasn't the case. Cristiane repeated her dismal performance from the Japan match(Olympics)--she was misfiring all over the place. She missed several sitters and botched a PK. She had a dreadful match. That said, Brazil didn't play that badly. Although this is Oliveria's first loss, I like what he's doing so far. He brought in the girls, who should have been given a chance at the Olympics. Another friend of mind suggested that Debora and Giovania(sp?) play at the same time. I'd like to see that as well. Sit both Cris and Thais and see what happens. Thais is useless and not strong enough to ball at the international level.

Formiga is not in the tournament because of a death in the family.

 

The main reasons Brazil lost this match: Cristiane, who's been playing like crap for years, screwed up every single play she was a part of, and the defense managed to gift both goals to Mexico (the freaking ball was in their possession!).

As for the new coach, the jury's still out. On the positive side, no Ester on the team. That's a huge improvement. Also, Erika is no longer in the backline. She played as a d-mid in both matches, but only goes forward once in a while. Now the bad part: he chickened out to Cristiane yesterday. She was bitching the whole time about not getting the ball on her feet and should have been subbed even before botching the PK. Instead, she played the full 90 minutes. C'mon! And he needs to be more aggressive about renewing the team. Enough of Cristiane, Daiane (Bagé), Aline, Rosana...

About Formiga, she's a tremendous player, but I doubt that she will be in the next World Cup or Olympic Games. So there's no much point in keeping her in the team, it would probably be better to give a chance to a new face.

 

Haha! I know you're happy Ester is gone!
I, too, noticed that Erika was still in more of a defense mode. That concerned me because I was excited to see her listed as a midfielder. I guess she does have to adjust mentally a bit.

I'm with you about Cristiane and the other players(although, I'd like to see Aline stay). Although I was proud that she regained her fitness this summer, Cristi whines too much and misses too many shots. I remember how she b*tched at Ro and Thais, during that Japan match, for goals that she should have made. Their services were nearly perfect, yet Cris couldn't convert. I think that Cris could be effective but she needs to work on that attitude.

What do you think of Debora and Giovania at the top together?

 

I'd keep Formiga over everyone you listed, who should be gone. She's worth the same to Brasil's mid-field, which just doesn't connect well to the forwards, when she is out, as Rampone is worth a million dollars to the horrible USWNT's backline.

Also, Byanca, U17, is a better forward than Thais. Debora just needs caps, and could have gained, if she hadn't been left off of the olympic squad.

Amanda should be given a chance for a back spot, plays smart and is another one, who can sneak up in the attack like an Alex Scott, but can actually produce goals unlike Scott.

 

I like Aline, but she's been a liability for too long. Way too many mental lapses for somenone with her experience. It's time to try something new in the backline.

I think it's worth a try, but probably won't happen. Cristiane being dropped from the squad is unlikely, and I bet her replacement would be Thais, the ballhogger.

 

So are we going to continue the 2011 thread into 2013, or actually have a new thread this year? X-D

 

Brazil 2-1 Denmark
Portugal 1-0 Mexico

With the results from today, Brazil and Denmark will meet again in the final on Wednesday.
Brazil's match started with a pleasant surprise, the coach finally decided to man up and dropped Cristiane, Aline and Rosana from the starting lineup. This time, unlike what happened against Mexico, the defense held it together. And the fact that Marta was subbed right in the beginning (felt a muscle strain) and Erika at halftime, made the victory even more meaningful. Now, if only we could get rid of Bagé. She had another of her brain farts and gifted the Danishes with a stupid PK in the last minute. Goals were scored by Erika and Debora.

 

It's great to see Erika back to her old U20 ways. That was a great team in 2008. Debora had a nice outing in the Portugal match also.

Bage never recovered from Lima in the World Cup. That's unfortunate. She has the second best physique to Daniella.

 

Man, I knew there was something I meant to watch! I guess Oliveria was peeping BS when he decided on today's lineup. Anyway, good to see Cris on the bench. Hopefully, that will motivate her to check that attitude and focus on hitting the back of the net when she's actually on the pitch.

Yeah, Daiane is prone to those brain farts. As much as I like her, I have to admit that she is one of the weak links, despite that powerful physique. Question: what other defenders should be given a chance?

So Marta was subbed and replaced by Giovania?

Wow, this tournament has been all over the place. Good for Portugal on their victory.

 

Hi, don't understand the sort of negative remarks about Erika, Marta & Bage. Brazil was leading 2-0 by halftime & the coach subbed them as he probably wanted to give some of his stronger players a break to be fresh for the championship game. Just saw 2 min highlight of the game but it really did'nt look like a penalty as the ball was going directly to the Dane player. Without Erika & Marta though, Brazil did'nt score in the 2nd half, so they still really depend on those two if they want to be competitive.

 

There's no negative remark about Erika. She never belonged on the backline, had the instinct for the position. She's a mid-fielder or second option forward by trade.

Daiana still hasn't recovered from Lima mentally.

 

You're right. Players like Cristiane got too confortable with their status, they need to earn the spot on the team.
That's the tough part. But I suppose defenders like Karen (who played well in the Pan of Guadalajara) and Tayla could have a shot.
Nope, Marta was replaced by Rosana. Giovania was a starter (Thais was injured), but didn't play well.

You got it all wrong. I was highlighting the fact that the team was able to win even without players like Marta and Erika. Brazil was leading 1-0 at halftime. And it was a clear penalty, Bagé was practically choking her opponent.

 

Just saw the highlights from yesterday's match. Erika showed ,once again that, when given the opportunity, no one has a knack for the goal the way she does. Debora's goal was a nice and composed swerve around the Danish keeper. Nice assist by Rose, too. Debora displayed her potential to be a top finisher with that one. I would just like for her to get a tad bigger(muscle) and focus shot selection.

Omg, Daiane's choke hold/take down of the Danish attacker was beyond blatant. She was lucky not to get a red for that. Yes, Karen, Tayla or some other defender will have to be added to the mix. Our big girls commit to many mistakes at the back to justify their selections.

Too bad Gia didn't play that well. Perhaps, she had a case of the nerves since she was starting.

 

Brazil and Denmark play today at 17:50 (Eastern Time) and looks like the match will be streamed. I'll post the link here closer to the time.

 

Link to watch Brazil vs Denmark:
http://esporte.band.uol.com.br/futebol/feminino/aovivo/

 

Thanks!
Oh, I forgot to mention the other day; there is another good thing: no Maurine!

 

Yeah... The Maurine from 2009/2010 was a pretty good player, but after that she went downhill.

 

That wasn't a bad first half. Could have been better for Brasil. Erika Santos commanding the center like a boss. She had the girls on the right working their tails off.