GERMANY IN 7TH HEAVEN WITH BRAZIL LEFT HUMILIATED

D. Ray Morton, 9th July 2014.

David Luiz turns on the waterworks after the worst game of his life. Paris St-Germain must be very concerned about having just spent €63m for his services

When making their pre-match predictions for the Brazil vs. Germany semi-final yesterday evening, people talked of Brazil's lack of creativity due to the missing Neymar. The concensus was that Germany would sniff out a narrow victory in a cagey match. The absence of centre-back and captain, Thiago Silva, was something of an afterthought. With Bayern Munich's Dante expected to replace him, it would be fine, they thought, and the main problem would be finding that spark in attack. Luiz Felipe Scolari must have been of the same school of thought and slapped the captain's armband on David Luiz allowing him to have command at the back. What a mistake that turned out to be.

Germany absolutely annihilated the Brazilians in Belo Horizonte, a place-name that will now seem like Hiroshima to native Brazilians. Thomas Müller opened the scoring with easiest of tap-ins from a corner with marking which would have driven a Sunday league manager insane. Bad start.

What happened between the 23rd and 29th minutes of that first half was scarcely believable. Even writing about it now, after the dust has settled, it still seems surreal. The Germans absolutely steamrollered a Brazilian side that had completely lost their discipline. They collapsed quicker than the Twin Towers. Miroslav Klose scored in the 23rd minute, his 16th all-time World Cup goal which saw him beat Ronaldo's record. Now Brazil more than just wilted. They lost the plot entirely. The cheese had slipped off the cracker. Toni Kroos netted two more goals before writers doing their play-by-play reports could catch their breath. Sami Khedira scored another. It was 5-0 and they had not played even half an hour.

Jaws dropped in the stands and the TV cameras flashed towards bawling Brazilian fans suffering a humiliation so great that it made their 1950 World Cup collapse to Uruguay seem like nothing. This was utter, complete devastation. The second half played out like something of a practice match. Manuel Neuer even had to make some decent saves but Brazil were playing like lost souls scattered around the Estádio Mineirão weighted by a sense of doom. As André Schürrle entered the fray, you could tell he was the type of player who would add more damage. Duly he did, scoring in the 69th and 79th minutes, the second goal quite stunning, Brazil left in tatters. Oscar's last minute rebuttal was like giving anaesthetic to someone who had just been put through a meat grinder.

This vile sea creature may be taking his vengeance on mankind after most of the world smirked gleefully at Brazil's demise

How did it all go so wrong? It cannot be blamed on David Luiz alone although he had a true nightmare, the worst game he will ever likely play. Collectively, as soon as the first goal went in, the heads dropped. This has been a strange World Cup for Brazil. Playing in front of their home crowd, the expectation has been massive. Players have routinely shed tears during the playing of the national anthem. Their psychological state bordered on somewhere between fanaticism and obsession. It was too volatile a cocktail without the calming presence of Thiago Silva around to essentially babysit a defence that did not have the bottle for a match of this magnitude.

It is something of a shame that Germany will not even be credited that highly for this unique semi-final triumph. Never has a team enjoyed such a resounding victory at this stage of the World Cup. Though Joachim Löw's side will go up in peoples' estimation, I still do not see them as a team that will tear apart either Argentina or the Netherlands in the final. Indeed, that second semi-final will probably be a world away from what we witnessed last night though making predictions at this stage of an insane World Cup is crazy business.

BRAZIL HAVE A DATE WITH GERMANY BUT AT WHAT COST?

D. Ray Morton, 5th July 2014.

Neymar in agony after being smashed in the lower back by Colombia's Zúñiga

World Cup hosts Brazil defeated Colombia 2-1 in their quarter-final bout last night thanks to a goal each from their centre-backs, Thiago Silva and David Luiz. Luiz's goal was a thing of a beauty, a rocket free-kick from distance but their victory will be overshadowed by the loss of the aforementioned Silva, the captain booked picking up a suspension, and notably Neymar, Brazil's superstar out through injury. They managed to dispatch the Colombians, who many people had fancied, but at quite the cost.

Neymar's injury was a cruel one. Opposition wing-back Juan Camilo Zúñiga smashed the fleet-footed Brazilian into the lower back with a driving knee. Zúñiga may not have been attempting to injure Neymar but he certainly meant to hurt him and his message was duly delivered. The diagnosis is a damaged vertebra with a minimum of a six-week lay-off expected.

They take on the Germans in the semi-final with essentially their two best players missing. Thiago Silva is a vital part of their defence and keeps the often positionally naïve David Luiz in check. All their creativity comes through Neymar and his replacement, whether it be Willian or Bernard, will feel the pressure of having to fill his boots. All of a sudden, Brazil do not seem as threatening any more and Germany can only be delighted at the convenience of all this.

David Luiz, a man obsessed?

RTÉ's Eamon Dunphy described David Luiz's body language as a man "obsessed" after scoring his goal but in all fairness, Luiz deserves praise for what was a genuinely stunning goal, maybe the most spectacular free-kick in World Cup history. Brazil beat a very physical Colombian side and though many have complained about their style of play, it is time to give them some bit of respect now. Colombia had actually been the only consistently impressive team in this tournament, Brazil beat them so what more do people want? It's not as if any of the other remaining teams in the competition have enthralled us. The Dutch had their big win against Spain but have played negatively since. Argentina are a one man team and Belgium have failed to excite despite defending very well.

Next come Germany who put away France in probably the dullest game of the knockout stages so far. Mats Hummels scored the only goal of the game early on and the Germans simply sucked the life out of Didier Deschamps' side to secure a boring-but-effective 1-0 win. Philipp Lahm looked good back in his right full-back position but there is still something of a striker dilemma with Miroslav Klose failing to impress. Perhaps André Schürrle will win a starting spot for the semi-final allowing Thomas Müller to play up front.

Tonight's matches are Argentina vs. Belgium (kick-off at 5pm GMT) and the Netherlands vs. Costa Rica (kick-off 9pm GMT) with the Argentines and Dutch expected to go through. Belgium will provide Messi and co. with a tough challenge, however, though it is hard to see the game underdogs of Costa Rica shocking Louis van Gaal and his troops.

BRAZIL PREVAIL IN WORLD CUP OPENER

D. Ray Morton, 13th June 2014.

Neymar got his brace against Croatia but Brazil were far from impressive in general

The 2014 incarnation of the FIFA World Cup kicked off yesterday after the bells, whistles and general nonsense of the opening ceremony ended. When the football actually got under way, hosts Brazil managed to dispatch enthusiastic underdogs Croatia with a 3-1 victory having gone a goal behind early on.

Brazil were gifted a victory over a hardly undeserving Croatian side who will feel aggrieved at some highly questionable refereeing decisions. It only took Croatia eleven minutes to take the lead. Brazil started nervously, as evidenced by some of the facial expressions in the tunnel before kick-off. They had been inefficient in their possession and Ivica Olic broke down the left for the visitors and managed to centre towards Nikica Jelavic. Jelavic made a weak connection with the cross but it was enough to guide it onto the toes of the on-rushing Marcelo who was left with the misfortune of scoring an own goal.

Brazil's equaliser came in the 29th minute, against the run of play perhaps, when Neymar managed to beat Stipe Pletikosa from distance with a scuffed left foot effort. Pletikosa's positioning throughout the night had been poor and, refereeing decisions aside, his dismal performance might have been enough alone to lose it for the Croatians.

The true turning point of the match did not come until twenty minutes before the end. Fred, having miscontrolled a ball in the opposition's penalty area, backed into Dejan Lovren and hit the deck as if he had been shot. Lovren's ever-so-slightly raised hands were enough for the Japanese referee to point to the spot. A simply ludicrous decision which spoiled an intriguing football match until that point. Croatia had played a neat short passing game, the now shaven-headed Luka Modric impressing with his all-round orchestration of the game, but now they found themselves 2-1 behind thanks to Neymar's penalty.

With the wind taken out of Croatia's sails, Oscar managed to extend the lead in injury time and there was even a question of a foul in the lead up to that one too. 3-1 to Brazil and a brace for Neymar. That would almost seem predictable to someone who just glanced at the scoreline but the match as a whole told a very different story. Modric had been the best player on the pitch, not Neymar. Brazil's superstar had a decent game, troubling defenders with his agility but offered very little threat. He was made to look good by Pletikosa's shortcomings. Even the penalty had uncertainty smeared all over it. Neymar took the most ridiculous of run-ups and managed to squeeze it past the keeper despite getting a full hand on the ball.

This was not a great showcase for the game as a World Cup opener. The casual fan might have enjoyed Brazil's comeback victory but there was nothing too heroic about it thanks to some shady officiating. Let us hope that this does not become a theme for the tournament where certain teams get preferential treatment. Usually teams that FIFA have an interest in. We do not want another 2002 World Cup farce.

WORLD CUP TRIUMPH IN MESSI'S HANDS

D. Ray Morton, 11th June 2014.

Lionel Messi will play in his first World Cup with Argentina built around him

The World Cup finally gets under way tomorrow evening (Brazil vs. Croatia K/O 9pm GMT) and speculation mounts as to who will win the competition on the back of many injuries and players who have endured sixty-game seasons. Lionel Messi, having surrendered his Balon d'Or crown to Cristiano Ronaldo last year, is many pundits' tip to be the star individual of the tournament.

There are several reasons as to why people think Messi will dominate at the World Cup. At one point last season, former Barcelona assistant manager, Angel Cappa, accused the Argentine of losing his passion for the game. Indeed, many felt that he had taken his foot off the pedal as his domestic season wound down in order to save himself for Brazil's football carnival. It is harsh to judge a player's professionalism like this and Diego Simeone's Atlético Madrid, who pipped Barça to both a Liga BBVA title and a place in the Champions League final, deserve a lot of credit for keeping Messi quiet throughout their series of games. Therefore, La Pulga Atómica has a lot to prove and a lot of pundits to silence. Included in this is the ever-opinionated Zvonimir Boban who recently accused Argentina's No. 10 of "not trying" (whilst also stating Barça teammate Neymar will never become the world's best player).

The reason for Messi optimism is as follows. Fair enough, his performances did dip a little towards the end of last season but it was on the back of a year that involved a serious hamstring injury. Between Barcelona's last game of the campaign and the start of the World Cup, he has been able to rest and is enjoying his time with the Argentina camp. There may be a sense of pressure too, however. Messi has vomited during play on several occasions in recent times and though he maintains it has nothing to do with nerves, it is odd that the medical staff cannot find an explanation for this. Messi believes it merely some undiagnosed, minor illness that just happens to him sometimes. Merely a weak stomach.

Assuming Messi is 100% fit and happy, he finds himself in an Argentina team built around him away from the pressures of Camp Nou. This was not the case in the past. Sergio Agüero and Gonzalo Higuaín should join him to form a formidable attacking force, arguably the best at the World Cup. Other major stars from top nations are either missing or struggling for fitness too which gives Messi the chance to shine above all others. Germany's Marco Reus, France's Franck Ribéry and Colombia's Radamel Falcao are all ruled out and there are question marks over the condition of Portugal's Ronaldo and Uruguay's Luis Suárez. Five top players who could have each taken the tournament by storm.

Considering Messi turns twenty-seven on 24th June, he should be at his prime in this World Cup. Argentina's potential path to the final is not the worst either and they could be looking at a semi-final against Spain and perhaps Brazil in the decider, the ultimate South American football rivalry. Spain are thought to be a little bit weaker than in their last three international championships and there are still questions over whether this Brazil team are really that good. There will be a lot more pressure on Neymar & co. than on Messi & co. Even playing the World Cup in South America helps. Obviously not against Brazil but against the European teams.

So will Messi cement that World Cup legacy that places Diego Maradona above him in the annals of the Argentine game? The conditions seem to be right for what Argentinians have been waiting for since 1986. With a much better supporting cast to boot.

REACTION TO SCOLARI'S BRAZILIAN WORLD CUP SQUAD

D. Ray Morton, 7th May 2014.

"Big Phil" has thought long and hard about his squad selection and the verdict is in

World Cup hosts and bookmakers' favourites Brazil named their squad for next month's finals today. Luiz Felipe Scolari has opted mainly for players who were involved in last summer's Confederations Cup triumph where they ran out 3-0 winners in the final against World Cup defending champions Spain. Here is the squad list in full:

Goalkeepers

Julio Cesar (Toronto FC), Jefferson (Botafogo), Victor (Gremio).

Defenders

Daniel Alves (Barcelona), Maicon (Roma), Marcelo (Real Madrid), Maxwell (Paris St. Germain), David Luiz (Chelsea), Thiago Silva (Paris St. Germain), Dante (Bayern Munich), Henrique (Napoli).

Thiago Silva, captain and key centre back for the Brazilians

Midfielders

Luiz Gustavo (Wolfsburg), Paulinho (Tottenham), Ramires (Chelsea), Fernandinho (Manchester City), Oscar (Chelsea), Willian (Chelsea), Hernanes (Inter Milan), Bernard (Shaktar Donetsk).

Fernandinho's move to Manchester City has done wonders for his international selection prospects
 

Attackers

Fred (Fluminense), Neymar (Barcelona), Hulk (Zenit St. Petersburg), Jo (Atletico Miniero).

There are arguably two surprises in their defensive selection. Very few would have expected Napoli's Henrique to feature but Scolari has worked with him at Palmeiras in the past and trusts his level of ability. Maicon's inclusion is another eyebrow-raiser considering he left Manchester City last season deemed past his peak and surplus to requirements.

Can Maicon still cut it the highest level? Scolari seems to think so

There are some notable exclusions at the back. Paris St. Germain duo Alex and Marquinhos have been snubbed. The former has enjoyed a great season in France and has formed a fine defensive partnership with national captain Thiago Silva. Scolari might have been wise in selecting him ahead of Dante whose form with Bayern Munich has really declined over the past couple of months. Also, Atletico Madrid's Miranda and Roma's Leandro Castan have been overlooked despite having outstanding campaigns at club level.

What more could Miranda have possibly done this season to be selected?

The midfield appears to have something of a "premface" bias towards it with five English-based players in the eight midfielders selected. Willian and Fernandinho find themselves there when it would have been unthinkable for them to be selected when they played at Anzhi Makhachkala and Shaktar Donetsk respectively. Playing in the Premier League does wonders for your chances of international selection (unless you're Spanish), not even so much in improving one's standard but to actually get noticed.

Joining Scolari's old club is a very good way to get noticed for the national team as Willian has found out

One eastern European-based player who is going is young Bernard, however. Another Shaktar recruit, the tricky playmaker has been brought along as, perhaps, an impact sub. The 21 year-old should consider himself very fortunate to have been picked ahead of "the two Lucases", Leiva of Liverpool and Moura of PSG. AC Milan's Kaka and Liverpool's Coutinho have also been left out in the cold.

Brazil's attack will rely on the qualities of Neymar with Fred and Hulk likely to start alongside him

The forward selection is probably about as expected with Scolari not bothering to opt for  Ronaldinho, Pato or Robinho who would have only made the seleção on past reputation alone. Granted, Ronaldinho has been awarded the South American player of the year (S.A.-based players only) but perhaps Scolari feels that his 34 year-old legs would not cut it at what will be a gruelling tournament which will require stamina the former Balon d'Or winner no longer has.

INJURIES HINDERING AGUERO'S CAREER

INJURIES HINDERING AGUERO'S CAREER

D. Ray Morton, 14th March 2014.

Injured again. On his day, Sergio "Kun" Aguero is one of the best strikers in the world. At age 25, however, his career has been dotted with too many recurring injuries that have, so far, prevented him from reaching his true potential. Breaking into the Independiente first team squad as far back as 2003, Aguero has been tipped for great things. His early rise to prominence was such that many predicted his career trajectory would be similar to that of Argentina's undoubted star man, Lionel Messi. Scoring 23 goals in 54 senior appearances at home, Aguero earned a €23m move to Atletico Madrid in 2006 where he went on to score 74 times in 175 games. He was on the radar of Europe's richest clubs at that stage and in 2011, Manchester City splashed €45m on his services.

Aguero may have been the man who scored their Premier League-winning strike against Queens Park Rangers two seasons ago but one must surely question his on-going fitness struggles at this point. It seems that every few weeks his hamstrings act up again, he plays a few games and then he's out for a few games. The pattern is becoming predictable and frustrating. City have one of the best strikers in the world and potentially one of the best all-round individual players but these constant interruptions are preventing him from realising his full capabilities. We have seen several strikers of this ilk over the years. Strikers with incredible ability but who might have been even greater had their bodies not kept breaking down on them.

One such example was Ronaldo (of Brazil). Winner of the World Cup in 1994 and 2002 and also the all-time highest goalscorer at World Cups with fifteen strikes, Ronaldo's career was extremely well decorated but one feels he could have reached the pantheon of football gods such as Pele and Diego Maradona had injuries not so cruelly stifled his career. When Ronaldo was fit, he was astonishing. He had the same blistering pace Aguero boasts, was two-footed and scored all kinds of goals. He joined Inter Milan from Barcelona in 1997 and had a great first season there winning the Ballon d'Or in the process. In a match against Lecce in November 1999 however, Ronaldo's knee buckled which started a series of injuries that would haunt him for the rest of his career. Despite managing to win a lot more after that point in his development, the stop-start pattern of his injuries prevented him from excelling into one of the truly great modern day footballers, a status that Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo now enjoy instead.

Another Brazilian who's suffered a cruel twist of fate when it comes to injuries is Pato. Once at AC Milan, Pato was another young superstar once heralded in the same breath as a young Messi or Aguero. He had shown great promise from an early age and had all the hallmarks of a future world beater in his displays at Internacionale which earned him a move to Italy's fashion capital in 2007. He started well in Milan and appeared as if he could be the real deal but from 2010 to 2013, his playing time was cut short with continuous injuries, often hamstring problems. His decline was such that he was shipped back to Brazil to Corinthians (and now on loan to Sao Paulo), where he's struggling desperately in his unlikely quest to force his way into the Brazilian World Cup squad. Aguero should count his lucky stars that his career hasn't fallen off the rails quite as dramatically but injury after injury suggests that big clubs will eventually cut the chord of support once their patience has been too thoroughly tested.

Michael Owen also knows a thing or two about being laid out on the treatment table. Another sprinter of a striker, Owen's injury problems were such that many people forget he was once awarded the European Player of the Year gong. Bursting onto the scene at World Cup '98 and having shown his great promise at Liverpool by winning a treble of League Cup, FA Cup and UEFA Cup in 2000-01, he earned a massive move to Real Madrid in 2004 which was hampered by hamstring pulls and knee problems. Over this period, he went from being a speed merchant to a six yard-box poacher such was his rapid decline in pace. By the time he joined Newcastle United in 2005, the club felt they could convert him into an attacking midfield playmaker. He wound down his career at Manchester United and Stoke City, though still highly effective at grabbing the odd goal, appearing to be a very different player from the lightning-quick threat he once was.

To Fernando Torres, another Aguero might be able to learn from. Torres took the Premier League by storm when he joined Liverpool from Atletico Madrid in 2007. Aguero was, in fact, Torres' direct replacement. Quick, mobile and unpredictable, the freckled Spaniard looked a very different player back then from the £50m flop we see regularly at Chelsea. His transformation into a moody, over-sized liability might have something to do with the brutality of the English game's strength and conditioning programme. He was part of the same Rafa Benitez Liverpool system that required players to partake in heavy squat exercises on Friday nights before Saturday afternoon kick-offs. Craig Bellamy, another rocket sprinter described it as the period in his career where he felt most unfit. Surely such intense strength-building exercises should belong in pre-season and certainly not the night before games.

What Aguero can learn from this is that he still has time, at only age 25, to figure out how best his body works and not to rush himself back after bouts on the sideline. Last season's Robin van Persie was a very good example of an athlete who really learned to understand his limitations, identified these and had a great season becoming Premier League top scorer and guiding Manchester United to the Premier League title. Tomas Rosicky at Arsenal is another player who has managed to shake off a career of recurring injuries and is now, finally, playing with the kind of regularity he must regret missing out on when he was at his expected peak.

So don't rush back, Kun! Get well when the time is right.