Virtuous cycle and rookie rival give confidence to Brazil – 07/22/2023 – Sport

Since taking over the Brazilian women’s team, Pia Sundhage, every now and then, makes a point of emphasizing that her work has long-term goals that go far beyond winning unprecedented titles.

The Swedish coach’s mission is, above all, to train a new generation of talents. When she took office in 2019, the squad was in the midst of a generational handover, which will be completed precisely during the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.

After the edition played in France, in which the Brazilians were eliminated by the hostesses in the round of 16, the trio formed by Marta, Cristiane and Formiga, symbols of the group that was vice-champion of the world in 2007 —to date the best result in the country—, began to fall apart.

Formiga retired, Cristiane stopped being called by Pia, and only Marta, 37, will be with the squad that debuts this Monday (24th), in Adelaide, against the debutante selection of Panama, at 8 am (Brasília time) —Globo, SporTV, Cazé TV, ge, globoplay and Fifa+ broadcast the game.

Not even the Queen has the untouchable status she once had. The star lost space in the team during the period in which he recovered from an injury to his left knee. As she returned to the pitch a few months before the Worlds, her real physical condition for the competition is anyone’s guess.

Even though he values ​​leadership and the strength of the number 10’s presence, Pia worked to not be dependent on the player. On the contrary, the Swede made other technical leaders flourish in the squad, and attacking midfielder Debinha is the one who best symbolizes that.

Skillful and versatile, she was Brazil’s top scorer in the Copa America, with five goals, alongside Adriana, and over the past year she has produced performances that earned her a nomination for the FIFA The Best award. She ranked sixth in the poll promoted among captains, national team coaches and specialized journalists.

At the age of 31, she shows gratitude for everything she learned from Marta, Cristiane and Formiga, among others, and makes herself available to be her reference now. “I’ve had the privilege of learning from each one of them, and I think I’ve been trying to pass that on to younger girls,” she says.

Of the 23 players who will fight for the unprecedented title for Brazil, 11 athletes will debut in the competition. There are names like Ary, Kerolin, Gabi Nunes, Geyse, Angelina and Bruninha, which reflect the renewal of the squad led by Pia Sundhage.

In his first complete cycle at the head of the national team, there was a significant improvement in relation to the way the country arrived for the last World Cup.

If four years ago the Brazilians landed in France with the weight of a bad phase, with only one victory and nine defeats in the ten games that preceded their debut, this time there is a recent history with more balance. Six wins, three losses and one draw.

In the final stretch of the cycle to the Cup, Brazil obtained good results against teams considered favorites for the world title, such as England and Germany. In the dispute of the Finalissima, a unique confrontation between the champions of the Euro and the Copa América, the Brazilians tied with the English, 1 to 1, and only let the title escape on penalties, on April 6th.

Five days later, Pia’s team beat the Germans, at their home, by 2-1. Overall, the Swede has accumulated 54 matches leading the team, with 33 wins, 12 draws and 9 defeats. With her, the players scored 124 goals and conceded 40. Brazil was also undefeated champion of the Copa América in 2022, without conceding goals.

Although she is not in the group of teams considered favorites for the title, the Brazilian has been seen as one of those capable of surprising in the competition. The country has not made it past the quarter-finals since 2007.

The first commitment in the Cup in Australia and New Zealand can help to increase the confidence of the Brazilians, after all, Panama is one of the debutants of this World Cup, alongside Portugal, Morocco, Philippines, Ireland, Haiti, Zambia and Vietnam.

The Panamanians, who reached the World Cup after a repechage against Paraguay and Papua New Guinea, believe, however, that they can also surprise the Brazilians. “When they put a ceiling on us, we always try to go above it,” said forward Karla Riley.

For her, Brazil will always be “the land of football”, but she trusts that her group “will do everything to win”.

The player’s confidence contrasts with the history of her national team. Panama is among the teams with the fewest games played from the 2019 World Cup to May 2023, according to a study by Fifpro, the international union of football players. The Central American country played 35 matches in the period, 18 competitive and 17 friendly.

In comparison, Brazil had 53, with 11 competitive and 42 friendly. The United States leads, with 65 matches, 16 competitive and 49 friendlies, numbers that make a difference in the development of the teams.

In addition to playing less, Panama has not accumulated good results, especially in a recent cut. In the last ten games, they won five, lost four and drew one. The victories were against teams of little expression (Gibraltar, Dominican Republic, Paraguay, Papua New Guinea and Chile).

The defeats occurred in clashes with countries with more tradition in women’s football, such as Japan and Spain, and were still due to elastic scores. The Japanese made it 5-0, and the Spanish, 7-0.

It is not unreasonable, therefore, to imagine the Brazilian team starting its trajectory in the World Cup, on Monday, also with a rout.