‘Germans simply good’
Published On July 18, 2014 » 1591 Views» By Administrator Times » Features
 0 stars
Register to vote!

I remember - logoTHE argument is over – the Germans are the undisputed world champions and they accomplished the feat in devastating fashion, crushing Brazil to pulp 7-1 in the semi-final, and outwitting Argentina 1-0 in extra-time in the FIFA World Cup Brazil 2014 final last Sunday night.
Following their conquest of Brazil and Argentina, one would be excused for coming to the conclusion that besides becoming the first European country to win the World Cup on South American soil, Germany also devalued the quality of the once highly-prized Brazilian and Argentinean players on the world soccer market.
In this regard, many would agree that those who are already plying their trade in Europe and elsewhere in the world can count themselves lucky because others seeking a better life overseas will be expected to prove themselves to secure contracts at top clubs like Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Manchester City, Chelsea and AC Milan.
To their credit, the Brazilians proved that they are a nation of real sportsmen and women who firmly believe in the ‘may the best team win’ adage.
Remarkably, too, was the fact that despite the 7-1 humiliation their team suffered on home soil, the people remained calmed, as they did not take to the streets in protest, destroying property and threatening the lives of the victorious Germans and other foreigners who had flocked to Brazil for the world soccer extravaganza.
They accepted with much grace the fact that their national team had lost the decisive match to a better and well-organised German side that dominated play in all departments of the game.
In my opinion, the Germans seem to have won their semi-final match against the five-time World Cup champions when they came from behind to force a 2-2 draw with Ghana’s ‘Gallant’ Black Stars in the quarter-finals.
With that draw, they seem to have ‘fooled’ and lulled the Brazilians into complacency, believing that they would easily walk over the men from Berlin and reach the final against either Argentina or Holland (the Netherlands).
Adept at exploiting the ‘element of surprise against their enemy, the Germans stunned the Brazilians with a quick goal within minutes from kick-off.
Their strategy must have been anchored on scoring a quick goal and then sitting back to stoically defend their hard-earned lead till the final whistle.
However, what they did not seem to have anticipated was the fact that their first goal would open the floodgates for them. Scenting victory once that happened, the Germans swiftly launched an all-out attack, piling pressure that left the Brazilian players running in circles like frightened chickens.
The Brazilians shockingly surrendered the midfield, which is the engine-room of the game, thus allowing the marauding Germans forwards plenty of space for manoeuvre.  It was a delight to see how efficiently they executed their ‘search-and-destroy’ blitz against the bewildered hosts who lost the first World Cup they staged to Uruguay in 1950.
Although there were fears the defeat to Uruguay would return to haunt them, what surprised most football followers across the globe, was the way the Brazilians succumbed  to the Germans as they lost the brilliance that once made them the most attractive side to watch.
As a result, Coach Luiz Felipe Scolari’s selection credentials came into question as he picked a side that has gone down as probably the worst side in Brazilian World Cup history, a huge stain on the career of a man who did some a sterling job for many clubs and countries like Portugal.
The squad had no stars to write home about like Ronaldo and Kaka during the South Korea/Japan jointly hosted 2002 World Cup, or Rivaldo (USA 1994), or Zico, Carlos Alberto and ‘peerless’ Pele of the epic 1970 World Cup final that saw Brazil win the trophy in Mexico for the third time and retain it for keeps.
The dearth of stars in Scolari’s line-up must have also disappointed and frustrated international soccer scouts who had hoped to make a killing by identifying and recruiting Brazil’s outstanding performers for European clubs where they are always in high demand.
It is hard to imagine whether the Brazilians would have performed any better if their key marksman Neymar had not fractured his vertebrae in the quarter-final clash with fellow South Americans, Colombia.
In fact, Neymar’s injury and subsequent absence from the Brazilian team against the Germans and The Netherlands in the third-place play-off, reminded me of the incident that took place during the 1966 World Cup finals in England when dazzling Pele seemed to have been deliberately ‘kicked out’ of the tournament by hard-tackling Portuguese defenders.
With the Pele-threat nicely ‘booted’ out of the way, the Portuguese machine swiftly steam-rolled over Brazil to reach the quarter-finals against North Korea.
And using Mozambique-born striker, Eusebio, who had migrated to Europe and decided to play for Portugal, the former colonial power, the Portuguese had the Koreans “snapping like bamboo sticks”. (The great Eusebio, who used to be among soccer luminaries that regularly graced each World Cup tournament, died in Lisbon early this year).
Did history, somehow, repeat itself during FIFA World Cup Brazil 2014? I could not help but wonder whether Neymar and, by extension, Brazil, were not victims of some unknown forces?
A silly thought, one might be inclined to say.
But I have always had a hunch that a certain level, the game of football and even the refereeing become political tools that some vested interests use behind the scenes to pre-determine the outcome of matches.
I must confess that I probably do not understand what the pundits mean by match-fixing. Gambling barons obviously know better.
As I stated earlier, these are mere thoughts – thoughts of some one who could hardly believe what was happening to Brazilians who were evidently unfit and looked as if they were sedated.
They were often at sea and unconvincing whenever in ball-possession this time around.
However, the difference is that in 1966, Portugal did not reach the final: England and former West Germany did.
Under team manager, Sir Alf Ramsay, and captain Bobby More of West Ham United, England clinched her first World Cup on home soil by beating West Germany 2-1 in extra-time of the final played at London’s famous Wembley Stadium.
If my memory serves me right the goals were scored Jeff Hurst and Alan Ball.
The goalkeeper was Gordon Banks, who is famously remembered for making what Pele described as a “sensational save”.
Everyone from all corners of the world wants England, the inventors of the beautiful game, to win but oddly, despite having one of the best premier leagues in the world, it has always been an uphill battle for the English national team since then.
As expected, Netherlands once more put up a great show in Brazil, embarrassing dethroned World Cup kings Spain 5-1 in the opening match of their Brazil 2014 campaign.
But despite their scintillating display, spearheaded by crack shot Arjen Robben, the Dutch played second fiddle to their European perennial rivals, Germany, who, after missing the opportunity to do so on home soil in 2006, went on to lift the cup for the fourth time.
England, France, Italy and Germany have all etched their names on the coveted FIFA World Cup. Will Holland ever do the same? It has always been “so close and yet so far” for the ‘flying’ Dutchmen.
But one thing I foresee is that after the fall of Argentina and Brazil, the two soccer powerhouses of South American football, the World Cup might remain in Europe for a considerable period of time.
Uruguay (the other World Cup winners from the region) and the rest of the nations in Latin America such as Chile, Costal Rica, Colombia, Mexico and even Peru – will have much difficulty in their attempts to retrieve it from Europe.
Of course, they can do it because they have much talent – and it came to the fore during the just-ended June 12-July 13 FIFA World Cup Brazil 2014 finals. But a lot of soul-searching and transformation will be required to revamp the standard of soccer on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean where it is in obvious decline.
As for Africa, only three of our five representatives – Nigeria’s Super Eagles, Ghana’s Black Stars and Algeria’s ‘Desert Foxes’ – did exceptionally well, though there is still room for improvement.
Nigeria, the reigning Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) champions made history by reaching the quarter- finals of the World Cup for the first time thanks to Coach Stephen Keshi.
The Eagles deserve unqualified praise for the feat they scored for their country and the continent.
And by holding Germany, the eventual World Cup winners, to a 2-2 draw in the second match of their title hunt, the Black Stars brought extra honour to Africa.
Ghana have always demonstrate that they possesses what it takes to win the World Cup, but the men from Accra must first learn to put their house in order if they are to make any breakthrough on the global stage.
While the Desert Foxes displayed first class soccer, Cameroun’s ‘Indomitable Lions’ put up a lackluster performance that must have left millions across Africa biting their nails in total disgust. Captain Samuel E’to and his lads failed dismally to click.
Camerounians have proud record of featuring at World Cup finals in the past.
The Lions of Yaonde are capable of achieving much in future, but they, too, should learn to focus more on the game than appearance fees.
Similarly, so much was expected of Ivory Coast as they were fielding world-class players, including skipper Didier Drogba.
To be fair, the Ivorian ‘Elephants’ did well in the circumstances; and one hopes the men from Abidjan will do much better next time.
However, the only trouble is that some of the players in the Ivorian squad, like their counterparts in national teams that played in Rio, are aging and might not be available next time.
That shifts the burden to Southern African region. Can Southern Africa succeed where North and West Africa has so far failed and produce a semi finalist or even a World Cup winner? Sounds impossible, doesn’t it?
Ex-England and Liverpool left-winger John Barnes said on his recent visit to Zambia that Africa does not deserve more than the five World Cup slots it presently enjoys because football leagues on the continent “are not as competitive” as those found in Europe and beyond.
True to some extent, but ‘disadvantaged’ Africa is quite capable of performing  even better if allocated more World Cup slots when the next FIFA congress sits in Zurich, at least eight, compared to Europe, which has more than a dozen slots that include, among others, Belgium, Croatia, England, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Switzerland  and The Netherlands.
Meanwhile, as the dust settles on FIFA World Cup Brazil 2014, it is back to the drawing boards not only for Africa, but also for South America where former champions Brazil and Argentina will have to redouble their efforts to erase that 7-1 humiliation they suffered at the hands of the Germans and Dutch who rewrote World Cup history during the Brazil 2014 finals.

Share this post
Tags

About The Author