Pre-match: AMISTOSO: Alemanha X Brasil, 27 de Março de 2018

Discussion in 'Brazil' started by Century's Best, Mar 23, 2018.

  1. Century's Best

    Century's Best Member+

    Jul 29, 2003
    USA
    #1 Century's Best, Mar 23, 2018
    Last edited: Mar 23, 2018
    [​IMG] vs.[​IMG]

    Location: Olympiastadion, Berlin, Germany

    [​IMG]
    Brazil roster:
    Goleiros

    Alisson (Roma)
    Neto (Valencia)
    Ederson (Manchester City)


    Laterais

    Daniel Alves (PSG)
    Fagner (Corinthians)
    Marcelo (Real Madrid)
    Ismaily (Shakhtar Donetsk)


    Zagueiros

    Miranda (Inter de Milão)
    Marquinhos (PSG)
    Thiago Silva (PSG)
    Pedro Geromel (Grêmio)
    Rodrigo Caio (São Paulo)


    Meias

    Casemiro (Real Madrid)
    Fernandinho (Manchester City)
    Fred (Shaktar Donetsk)
    Paulinho (Barcelona)
    Renato Augusto (Beijing Guoan)
    Talisca (Besitkas)
    Philippe Coutinho (Barcelona)
    Willian (Chelsea)


    Atacantes

    Douglas Costa (Juventus)
    Taison (Shakhtar Donetsk)
    Gabriel Jesus (Manchester City)
    Roberto Firmino (Liverpool)
    William José (Real Sociedad)

    Having finally earned a win under Tite against a UEFA side (albeit not the most demanding possible opponent), with Russia trying hard but succumbing before a visitor whose 3-0 goleada today will hopefully be the first of several wins on Russian soil in 2018, Tite's Brazil now encounters its greatest test.

    Barring a deep run into this year's World Cup, Brazilian fans will watch on Tuesday, March 27, the most awaited match for their National Team in 4 years. In the aftermath of Brazil's failure to reach World Cup glory on home soil, Brazil's downs and struggles, followed by improvement and regained respect, all lead up to 90 minutes on a cool European afternoon.

    Before Brazil will be none other than #1 FIFA-ranked, four-time and current World Cup champion Germany.

    With the possible exception of the Tragédia do Sarriá in 1982, which as a child I watched and wept over, the defeat Brazil suffered at the hands of Germany in Belo Horizonte nearly four years ago traumatized Brazilian fans more profoundly than any other setback since the Maracanaço of 1950. Sober-minded fans always knew that Germany was, realistically, a possible winner for that confrontation; it was the margin of defeat the world witnessed that day was beyond even the most pessimistic Brazilian's imagination.

    CONMEBOL's World Cup qualifying rounds had their drama and difficulties, but Brazil under Tite rose from the ashes and proved to be far superior over any local opponent. Germany however combines world-class football with a psychological burden that no other team in the world, South American or not, can currently provide against Brazil. With only a few losses since triumphing in Rio de Janeiro in 2014, Germany has been remarkably consistent, and it seamlessly integrated young players to create a hybrid side which won last year's Confederations Cup. Fans, journalists, former players, and self-proclaimed experts have pegged Germany as a favorite to win a back-to-back World Cup title this year (which has not happened since Brazil in 1958-1962) and a fifth overall. It has been some time since a reigning World Cup champion demonstrated such consistency during a title reign to be so (nearly) unanimously considered an absolute favorite to win the World Cup again. With this background, a win by Brazil, especially a convincing one, will restore some pride and also go do in history – even if this is a friendly.

    As in Luzhniki and in Wembley, Brazil will be at a historic stadium, one whose past goes beyond football. The 1936 Summer Olympics were held here, with the world getting a glimpse of a rejuvenated Germany, fresh off great economic industrial and growth in the aftermath of the crippling sanctions from the Treaty of Versailles. Under the watchful eye of the Nazi Führer Adolf Hitler, for the first time, humanity watched an Olympic broadcast on TV. 38 years later, Germany (then West Germany) hosted the World Cup; Olympiastadion hosted 3 matches, with the locals actually losing a historic confrontation against East Germany. More recently, Barcelona won the 2015 Champions' League here.

    And when it comes to history, whether in geopolitics or in sports, Germany is a major player. Its fortunes after its 1-0 victory on 7/13/2014 began a 45-match streak, where the Germans hosted and defeated Scotland 2-0 in its first qualifying game for the 2016 European Championship. They then suffered a 2-4 rout by Argentina in a friendly, in what was its first of six defeats in 16 matches from the 9/3/2014 win vs. Scotland to a 2-3 friendly defeat in Berlin vs. Germany on 3/26/2016. In the same span, Germany won 8 matches and drew 2, defeating Spain but losing to France.

    History has smiled upon the Germans since then, as their 29 following matches have resulted in a far more favorable win vs. loss ratio: 2 losses among 6 draws and 21 wins. From 3/29/2016, in a convincing 4-1 friendly win vs. Italy, until 11/14/2017, in a 2-2 draw with France, Germany has defeated almost everybody in its path en route to the 2017 Confederation Cup title, easy qualifying for the 2016 European Championship, and a perfect 10-0 record in Group C of UEFA's 2018 World Cup qualifying group. During this stretch, the Germans destroyed minnows like Azerbaijan 1-4 and 5-1, San Marino with 0-8 and 7-0 routs, while also being competitive with tougher opposition like England (1-0), Mexico (4-1), and the Czech Republic (3-0 and 1-2 in WCQ). We Brazilians would find it noteworthy that Norway, who gave us fits in France 1998 and who beat us in a friendly 4-2 back in 1997 (and whom Brazil has never beaten), were defeated by Germany 3-0 in Norway and 6-0 in Germany.

    Germany was the first team outside hosts Russia and after Brazil to qualify for Russia 2018 (England did the same on the same day, 10/5/2017).

    This recent history demonstrates Germany is probably the best team in the world at the moment – France notwithstanding, as France and Germany met 3 times since the 2014 World Cup, where Germany won 1-0 in the quarterfinals. Two friendlies and 1 Euro 2016 confrontation have the French ahead 6-4 in goals, with 2 goals scored per game. I believe that other than Germany, France is the world's top contender for this World Cup, and that the precise and efficient Germans have not defeated them in 3 matches should earn attention.

    It is therefore not only the ghosts of the Mineiraço but also the weight of World Cups past, the status of defending champion, and the burdensome struggle to return to the top that await Brazil at the stadium where Hitler once greeted the world's athletes. There will not only be 9 World Cup titles on the field. There will not be only 2 of the top teams in the world. There will be all that and much more as Brazil and Germany face each other off again, nearly 4 years after a night no one will ever forget.

    And yet, it is ironic that for a confrontation so fraught with history and tradition, that there have only been 6 non-friendly matches between Germany and Brazil (counting Brazil vs. West Germany, East Germany, and unified Germany). The first competitive match between West Germany and Brazil was in faraway 1981 "Mundialito" held in Uruguay. Brazil did not face Germany in a tournament again until 1999, when Germany lost to Brazil in the Confederations Cup by 4-0. There was then the 2002 World Cup final, the 2005 Confederations Cup, and finally, the 2014 World Cup. Other than these, there was a rare match vs. East Germany in 1974. Outside of these and beyond youth/U-21/U-20 tournaments, Brazil and Germany do not do more than have friendlies. This record – 22 matches vs. West Germany and unified Germany – clearly favors Brazil, as Brazil won 12 times, with 5 draws and 5 losses. Incidentally, Germany had never defeated Brazil in a non-friendly match… until 2014.

    Without Neymar, Tite managed to get Brazil to perform cohesively enough to neutralize the brave but limited Russians, and Neymar's absence was not felt. Having avoided injuries, and with two more friendlies after this match and before the World Cup (Croatia and Austria), Tite will have what is likely to be his most precious chance to test players and tactics before the team's June 15th debut vs. Serbia. In terms of talent and tactics, Germany will give Tite's Brazil its most daunting and arguably tensest challenge yet.

    This challenge will be embodied in a starting XI manager Joachim Löw will flesh out from the following roster, which has 17 players who participated in last year's Confederations Cup title run and 8 who were part of 2014's World Cup winning side (Ginter, Hummels, Boateng, Khedira, Draxler, Kroos, Özil, and Müller):

    Goleiros: Bernd Leno (Bayer Leverkusen), Kevin Trapp (Paris Saint-Germain), Marc-André ter Stegen (Barcelona)

    Defensores: Marvin Plattenhardt (Hertha Berlim), Jonas Hector (Colônia), Matthias Ginter (Borussia Mönchengladbach), Mats Hummels (Bayern München), Antonio Rüdiger (Chelsea), Jerome Boateng (Bayern München), Joshua Kimmich (Bayern München), Niklas Süle (Bayern München)

    Meio-campistas: Sami Khedira (Juventus), Julian Draxler (Paris Saint-Germain), Toni Kroos (Real Madrid), Mesut Özil (Arsenal), Thomas Müller (Bayern München), Emre Can (Liverpool), Sebastian Rudy (Bayern München), Leroy Sané (Manchester City), Leon Goretzka (Schalke), Ilkay Gündogan (Manchester City), Julian Brandt (Bayer Leverkusen)

    Forwards: Mario Gomez (Stuttgart), Sandro Wagner (Bayern München), Lars Stindl (Borussia Mönchengladbach), Timo Werner (RB Leipzig)

    Brazil head-to-head vs. Germany (post-unification):
    12/16/1992: 3-1 (friendly)
    6/10/1993: 3-3 (friendly)
    11/17/1993: 1-2 (friendly)
    3/25/1998: 2-1 (friendly)
    7/24/1999: 4-0 (Confederations Cup)
    6/30/2012: 2-0 (World Cup)
    9/8/2004: 1-1 (friendly)
    6/25/2005: 3-2 (Confederations Cup)
    8/10/2011: 2-3 (friendly)
    7/8/2014: 1-7 (World Cup)


    Brazil head-to-head vs. West Germany:

    5/5/1963: 2-1 (friendly)
    5/6/1965: 2-0 (friendly)
    6/16/1968: 1-1 (friendly)
    12/14/1968: 2-2 (friendly)
    6/16/1973: 0-1 (friendly)
    6/12/1977: 1-1 (friendly)
    4/5/1978: 1-0 (friendly)
    1/7/1981: 4-1 (Mundialito)
    5/19/1981: 2-1 (friendly)
    3/21/1982: 1-0 (friendly)
    3/12/1986: 2-0 (friendly)
    12/12/1987: 1-1 (friendly)


    Brazil head-to-head vs. East Germany:

    6/26/1974: 1-0 (World Cup)
    1/26/1982: 3-1 (friendly)
    4/8/1986: 3-0 (friendly)
    5/13/1990: 3-3 (friendly)
     
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  2. celito

    celito Moderator
    Staff Member

    Palmeiras
    Brazil
    Feb 28, 2005
    USA
    Club:
    Palmeiras Sao Paulo
    Nat'l Team:
    Brazil
    Are you training to be a journalist @Century's Best ? Your intros are becoming more like books :ROFLMAO:
     
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  3. Century's Best

    Century's Best Member+

    Jul 29, 2003
    USA
    You guys are all welcome for having your knowledge expanded thanks to me. :p

    I'd pay attention in particular to the advantage Brazil has over Germany as it was built mostly on friendlies. Starting in the 2006 World Cup, they became a steady contender in anything they played in until they won it all in 2014. From the 2002 World Cup until the 2017 Confederations Cup, they reached the semifinal in every tournament other than Euro 2004. This is an impressive streak, and they do simply shrug off losses in friendlies. They seem to really not care about friendlies much at all.
     
  4. celito

    celito Moderator
    Staff Member

    Palmeiras
    Brazil
    Feb 28, 2005
    USA
    Club:
    Palmeiras Sao Paulo
    Nat'l Team:
    Brazil
    Khedira, Ozil, Muller, Emre Can all out for the friendly.

    I'd like to see Tite experiment more than last 10-15 min subs if he is really considering the likes of Willian Jose and Talisca.
     
  5. ripalino

    ripalino Member

    Feb 26, 2013
    Sao Paulo
    Club:
    Fluminense Rio Janeiro
    Nat'l Team:
    Brazil
    It may be intentionally done so as not to show us all their cards.....Even if Brazil wins this , they can say that the key players were missing.
     
  6. old_carioca_in_nyc

    Jan 26, 2007
    I like and respect them for not firing their coach after losing tournaments. They keep their cool and
    don’t let a defeat drive them crazy... We are way too emotional when it comes to losing a world cup.
     
  7. celito

    celito Moderator
    Staff Member

    Palmeiras
    Brazil
    Feb 28, 2005
    USA
    Club:
    Palmeiras Sao Paulo
    Nat'l Team:
    Brazil
    Khedira and Can are hurt. Not sure about Ozil and Muller.
     
  8. Donauwelle

    Donauwelle Member

    Oct 10, 2011
    Club:
    FC Bayern München
    Löw send them home to rest. Löw is always using one match with his best formation to see where they stand - and the second one in which he tries the alternatives. He knows that Müller functions and how Özil plays. So better get them some rest prior to the busy weeks with national and international competition. It is the last time to test prior to the World Cup nominations.

    And yes - I think that he probably does everything to get the steam out of this match because of the last one. It is just a friendly.
     
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  9. IVO !

    IVO ! Member

    Feb 25, 2009
    RIO AND CHICAGO
    Club:
    Flamengo Rio Janeiro
    Nat'l Team:
    Brazil
    I am still mind boggled Luan was not selected, an absolute shocker.
    I have a suspicion Fernandinho will start in center mid and Coutinho pushed to the ponta, and Paulinho out. Tite may want to test a different formation.
     
  10. celito

    celito Moderator
    Staff Member

    Palmeiras
    Brazil
    Feb 28, 2005
    USA
    Club:
    Palmeiras Sao Paulo
    Nat'l Team:
    Brazil
    Low is a smart man then.
     
  11. Century's Best

    Century's Best Member+

    Jul 29, 2003
    USA
    As I wrote in my opening post: the Germans don't prioritize friendlies, ja? ;)
     
  12. Donauwelle

    Donauwelle Member

    Oct 10, 2011
    Club:
    FC Bayern München
    No. We do not. We always lose against the Argentinians in friendlies and win against them in the tournaments... :)

    But in the recent series of friendlies with two matches you could always see that one was played with the first selection and the other one was more experimental - Löw likes to do experiments, too. Sometimes even with three in the back.

    Spain on Friday was a good test. Narrow wins, losses or draws are fine some months before the tournament as nobody gets euphoric and all know that there is still a lot work to do.

    Löw will rest Ter Stegen tomorrow two and will use both Leno and Trapp for a halftime. If Khedira plays he will be captain - else Boateng who sure will play - Berlin is his hometown. Gündogan, Sane and Plattenhard (left back) are confirmed starters, too.
     
  13. celito

    celito Moderator
    Staff Member

    Palmeiras
    Brazil
    Feb 28, 2005
    USA
    Club:
    Palmeiras Sao Paulo
    Nat'l Team:
    Brazil
    My attention span is not long enough ... but I'd imagine it starts with the history of Bavaria. :ROFLMAO:
     
  14. Century's Best

    Century's Best Member+

    Jul 29, 2003
    USA
    Oh pay attention, didn't you see my assessment of the Holy Roman Empire?
     
  15. Century's Best

    Century's Best Member+

    Jul 29, 2003
    USA
    What strikes me about you Germans is your pragmatism and efficiency, which is an outgrowth (IMO) of German culture. But in the case of your national team, keeping Löw as manager since 2006 (and he was assistant manager under Klinsmann then) is nothing short of impressive. In South America, and definitely in Brazil, it's unheard of. Since he took over your national team, we've had 4 managers (Tite being the latest) and Dunga took the job twice. Only because Tite did so well in WCQ are there conversations going around about CBF offering him a job extension beyond the World Cup.

    With the changes your team made between the Spain match and tomorrow's game, it shows that the managerial staff doesn't care much about losing or winning, and rather, about fine-tuning the squad.

    I wouldn't take a win vs. you tomorrow too seriously - we defeated you in your country in 1998 before the World Cup, and that didn't do much for us come the actual tournament.
     
  16. IVO !

    IVO ! Member

    Feb 25, 2009
    RIO AND CHICAGO
    Club:
    Flamengo Rio Janeiro
    Nat'l Team:
    Brazil
    In Brasil we change coaching staffs as much as we go to the bathroom.
    I personally do not take friendlies too seriously on the results, as these matches are more experimental, testing out players and formations. Of course these matches are also important warm ups and pre WC analysis of how our team is playing, and I was pleased with the teams performance against Russia.
    Because of the historical, embarrassing, miserably depressing shalaking we experienced last WC, Brasil Will take the result against Germany more seriously.
     
  17. omajac

    omajac Member+

    Feb 9, 2002
    East Orange, New Jersey, USA
    Club:
    FC Barcelona
    Nat'l Team:
    Brazil
    I'm predicting a 2-1 win like we had 20 years ago!! D. Costa and Coutinho will score!!
     
  18. celito

    celito Moderator
    Staff Member

    Palmeiras
    Brazil
    Feb 28, 2005
    USA
    Club:
    Palmeiras Sao Paulo
    Nat'l Team:
    Brazil
    I am predicting we win 7 x 1.
     
  19. White/Blue_since1860

    Orange14 is gay
    Jan 4, 2007
    Bum zua City
    Club:
    TSV 1860 München
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
    I came here to report about the to be expected B squad from our side and Im pleasantly surprised you wont take a win too seriously. We played England in March 2016 in Berlin, subbed our entire back four out when 2-0 up, just to eventually lose 2-3. England then declared themselves Euro favorites until they ran into Iceland.

    Btw. the friendly in 2004 was Löw's first game in charge as co. Basically the first game of our revolution

     
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  20. ripalino

    ripalino Member

    Feb 26, 2013
    Sao Paulo
    Club:
    Fluminense Rio Janeiro
    Nat'l Team:
    Brazil
    Would have been excellent . But very unlikely. Even Germany cant do it again . Its a freaky incident which happened in 2014 never to be repeated again.
     
  21. Mengão86

    Mengão86 Moderator
    Staff Member

    Flamengo
    Brazil
    Nov 16, 2005
    Maryland, RJ/ES/PE
    Club:
    Flamengo Rio Janeiro
    Nat'l Team:
    Brazil
  22. White/Blue_since1860

    Orange14 is gay
    Jan 4, 2007
    Bum zua City
    Club:
    TSV 1860 München
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
    "7-1-Land" is a good one
     
  23. omajac

    omajac Member+

    Feb 9, 2002
    East Orange, New Jersey, USA
    Club:
    FC Barcelona
    Nat'l Team:
    Brazil
    I think Fernandinho will join Casemiro and Renato Augusto in the midfield
     
  24. ripalino

    ripalino Member

    Feb 26, 2013
    Sao Paulo
    Club:
    Fluminense Rio Janeiro
    Nat'l Team:
    Brazil
    I am predicting 1-1 because no team will go all out and risk being defeated which will give the other team a " psychological advantage " during the real tournament.
     
  25. celito

    celito Moderator
    Staff Member

    Palmeiras
    Brazil
    Feb 28, 2005
    USA
    Club:
    Palmeiras Sao Paulo
    Nat'l Team:
    Brazil
    Prediction is Casemiro, Fernandinho and Paulinho. No Renato Augusto.

    Coutinho, Wilian, Jesus up front.
     

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