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Dunga looks to the future
By Chris Marks
Despite having arguably the world’s most talented pool of footballers at his disposal, new Seleção coach Dunga has a massive job on his hands. Being knocked out of the FIFA World Cup at the quarter-final stage is just not acceptable for a nation of Brazil’s size, and the former national team skipper will know much more will be expected of his charges in four years’ time.
After an unsuccessful tournament, many nations revamp their senior sides, starting with a new coach and staff, and continuing through a restructuring of the squad. In this respect, the five-times world champions are no different. After recovering from the shock of his surprise appointment, former Stuttgart midfielder Dunga will surely have to overhaul a squad that simply didn’t turn up for this summer’s finals.
Brazil face a similar challenge to the one they faced after losing to France in Mexico ’86. That team, under Telê Santana, fell to the French at the same quarter-final stage with a side that relied heavily on heroes from the previous tournament in Spain four years previously. Any manager would want to call on the likes of Zico, Sócrates, Falcão and Júnior, but by 1986 that foursome were all well into their thirties and in some cases not fully fit. Many of Brazil’s present squad fit into those categories as well, as maybe Parreira should have noticed.
Another key factor for the manager to consider is the different way football works in South America. In Europe, there is a major international tournament every two years, and so there is plenty of opportunity for squad renewal, both by replacing players who retire from international duty and by bringing in new talent in place of under-performing stars. However this is not the same case for Brazil. With the Copa América running an irregular schedule and never having been the biggest priority, only the Olympic Games tournament has much significance, and of course that is largely for under-23 players.
This means that when taking a new look at the full international side, players under consideration need to have four years, not two, added to their age when judging whether they will still be useful for the next trophy (although there is the marathon South American FIFA World Cup qualifying group to consider). In this respect Brazil have work to do. Three of this summer’s team’s back five are well over 30 – Dida, Cafu and Roberto Carlos. From the remainder of the squad from Germany, nine more will have seen their thirtieth birthday by the end of the year.
The two wingbacks are sure to step aside after glorious careers, but there remains uncertainty about Dida. He will be 37 in South Africa in 2010 and certainly no spring chicken. Add this to his uncertain form with Milan last season (and that club’s rumoured interest in Italy no.1 Gianluigi Buffon), and the emergence of challengers like Júlio César and the future is far from certain for the giant ‘keeper.
Many people would agree that Cafu already has his successor within the current set-up. The impressive Cicinho is sure to at least begin preparations for 2010 as first choice, although here he is not alone in the race for the right-wingback slot. Anyone who saw Daniel Alves’ impressive display in the 2006 UEFA Cup final will know he is a talent to be watched. So too are the younger options, such as Schalke’s Rafinha, as well as home-based talents like Corinthians’ Eduardo Ratinho and Palmeiras’ Amaral. After many years of struggling to replace Cafu, it now looks as though Dunga will be spoilt for choice on this front.
The same cannot be said of the left-wingback’s shirt. Roberto Carlos has been as much part of the scenery for Brazil over the last decade or so as anyone and the Real Madrid man will be hard to replace. The fact that candidates who have replaced him in recent years include Gustavo Nery (29), Gilberto (30) and Júnior (33) shows that the cupboard is far from full of (young) options. Other players like Kléber, now of Santos, and Liverpool’s new signing Fábio Aurélio have simply never fulfilled their potential. However, two names to look for over the coming years are Adriano, another star of Sevilla’s successful European adventure, and Marcelo, a Fluminense 18-year-old already being tipped for big things.
With the central defensive area looking reasonably solid, the defensive midfield slots remain a massive problem. A wide range of players have been selected in these roles over the last few years, including defenders like Roque Júnior and Edmílson and attacking players like Juninho Pernambucano. This summer’s pairing featured two former Bayer Leverkusen players, Émerson and Zé Roberto. While the latter looked intelligent in possession of the ball and hard-working when not, new Real Madrid man Émerson looked slow and ponderous, offering little of note throughout the tournament. Indeed, Brazil looked far stronger when he was replaced by Arsenal’s Gilberto Silva, unfortunately another member of the 30-plus club.
It is the midfield generally that needs the most work. Of the eight midfielders selected for duty in Germany, only Kaká and Ronaldinho are younger than 30, and in the defensive zone the cupboard looks particularly bare. Brazilian coaches have in recent years tended to favour athletic defensive midfielders, or ‘volantes’ as they are known. These players offer little going forward but shield the back four using their physical presence and a smattering of tactical fouling. What Brazil lack is a Mascherano or Pirlo, capable of playing from deep and still defending well. One youngster with potential is Fluminense’s Arouca, although he is still very inexperienced.
In the attacking areas, the situation is more as one would expect, with plenty of talent coming through. Of the magic four deployed by Parreira in Germany, only Ronaldo is approaching the end of his international career, and of course there is the promise of Robinho to look forward to in the years to come. In midfield, there are teenage talents like Porto’s Anderson, Cruzeiro’s Kerlon and new Corinthians man Ramón with masses of potential. Furthermore, ex-Santos creator Diego will surely resurface at some point, perhaps this year after his move to Werder Bremen from Porto.
Up front there are a lot of talented players to choose from. Lyon’s Fred made the squad at the expense of Ricardo Oliveira, but both will be looking to impress Dunga next year. Further down the pecking order are Rafael Sobis, so impressive for Internacional over the last eighteen months, and Lenny, yet another Fluminense teenage prodigy. Let us also not forget the potential of Nilmar and Dagoberto, the latter of whom has been hampered by severe injury problems of late.
In summary, it is not surprising to conclude that a country of 180 million people can produce so many talented footballers, and in many respects Dunga’s job will be just as much about re-motivating the players - making them once again into the well-oiled machine that purred so beautifully in 2005 – as it will be about selecting new players. But such is the nature of both Brazilian football specifically and modern football as a whole, that having so many players to choose from can be a curse as well as a blessing. With that talented pool of footballers come arguably that world’s most expectant fans and press, who will not tolerate another quarter-final ‘failure’.
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