THE BLOG FROM BRAZIL: The struggles of Brazilian coaches in the Premier League, Beckham hits Rio and another World Cup stadium is completed (sort of)

By Joe Callaghan

PUBLISHED: 07:35 EST, 11 March 2014 | UPDATED: 09:11 EST, 11 March 2014

The World Cup is just three months away and excitement is building. Each week our man in Brazil, Joe Callaghan, brings us the latest news and views from South America and provides a flavour of exactly how the World Cup in Brazil is shaping up.

 

As he sat high in the stands at Saturday night's Sambadrome parade and watched the curtain finally come down on the never-ending party that is Carnaval, Luiz Felipe Scolari had plenty of reasons to be cheery.

Okay, so cheeriness isn't a trait you'd always associate with Big Phil but then he's in a good place right now. The end of Carnaval marks the end of summer here and leaves Brazil hunkering down and giving itself a breather before the next shindig - the biggest of them all that will descend on the country this June.

Then Scolari - and not the country's samba stars - will be the centre of attention. But fresh from last week's friendly thumping of South Africa, the Seleção chief has only good dilemmas. In spite of uncertainty over the last three spots in his squad, what is certain is that it will shatter all precedents on Premier League representation.

All smiles: Brazil coach Luiz Scolari enjoys a lighter moment during his team's comfortable win over South Africa

All smiles: Brazil coach Luiz Scolari enjoys a lighter moment during his team's comfortable win over South Africa

Troubled times: Scolari struggled to make his mark during his difficult six months as Chelsea manager

Troubled times: Scolari struggled to make his mark during his difficult six months as Chelsea manager

Struggles: Scolari's time at Stamford Bridge coincided with indifferent results and reports of a player revolt

Struggles: Scolari's time at Stamford Bridge coincided with indifferent results and reports of a player revolt

 

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Only two Premier League players have ever gone to a World Cup with Brazil (Gilberto Silva in 2006 and Heurelho Gomes in 2010). This year, six (David Luiz, Oscar, Ramires, Paulinho, Willian and either Fernandinho or Lucas) are likely to make the cut. It's a contingent that will help ensure another overwhelming European battalion - likely to be 19 members of the 23, following on from 20 in 2010 and 2006.

This is an era where Brazil's best and brightest are taking to European football and excelling like never before. But Brazilian coaches haven't been able to follow suit. Not by a long shot. The lack of success of managers from these parts in Europe is beyond glaring. It's blinding.

Brazil have changed manager 11 times in the last quarter century. Of the men that have held the top job in those 25 years, astonishingly only one has ever won a European title of significance - Carlos Alberto Parreira's solitary Turkish league crown with Fenerbahce in 1996.

Different story: Brazilian players David Luiz (left), Ramires (centre) and Oscar have enjoyed success at Chelsea

Different story: Brazilian players David Luiz (left), Ramires (centre) and Oscar have enjoyed success at Chelsea

Man City's Fernandinho will go up against Liverpool's Lucas for a World Cup spot
Chelsea's Willian is expected to make Brazil's World Cup squad

Success: Man City's Fernandinho (left) and Willian of Chelsea have also excelled in the Premier League

Scolari's struggles at Chelsea were matched by Vanderlei Luxemburgo's underwhelming spell in charge of Real Madrid. But why?

Native pundits point to the lack of a proper coaching accreditation system. Badges are not required, an ability to badger players is. The authoritarian schoolmaster is still the prototype in Brazil, while the rest of the world has largely moved on.

One national team expert we spoke to this week expressed concern that, for the most part, Brazilian coaches 'have stopped to develop tactically'. Pre-seasons here are drastically shorter and a domestic coach who tries something innovative and loses two or three games is usually sacked.

Sole success: Scolari's assistant Carlos Alberto Parreira won a league title in Turkey with Fenerbahce

Sole success: Scolari's assistant Carlos Alberto Parreira won a league title in Turkey with Fenerbahce

In Big Phil, Brazil have a man who has been there and done it internationally - a World Cup in 2002, Euro 2004 runner-up with Portugal, knocking England out then and in Germany two years later. Once he steps aside, though, they may be forced to turn to an imitation of him - but crucially, a cheap one, without the winning habit.

Of course for Scolari, who's got more than enough on his plate, this matters little. For Brazil and for the future though, it might just matter a lot. 

Failure: Vanderlei Luxemburgo (left), talks to Ronaldo during his disappointing spell as Real Madrid boss

Failure: Vanderlei Luxemburgo (left), talks to Ronaldo during his disappointing spell as Real Madrid boss

And then there were three

Just four months late and three months before England and Italy pitch up, the Arena da Amazonia was finally inaugurated on Sunday.

The stadium was only half-full with just under 20,000 filling the lower bowl for the meeting of Nacional and Remo. But fans were far from happy with the first outing - unfinished toilets, marathon concession lines, a leaky roof and tickets for non-existent seats among problems local chiefs have insisted won't be repeated.

FIFA are still sweating on São Paulo, Cuiaba and Curitiba in the race to be ready by June. Incidentally, the result of the arena's opening game? 2-2...a scoreline Roy Hodgson would probably happily take on June 14.

Finished? The Arena da Amazonia in Manaus, where England play their first World Cup game, is now open

Finished? The Arena da Amazonia in Manaus, where England play their first World Cup game, is now open

Good week: Bragging rights

Sunday was derby day in Brazil's big two state leagues with Flamengo and Botafogo facing off at the Maracanã and Corinthians and São Paulo duking it out up the road.

Flamengo secured the regular-season title with a comfortable 2-0 win, but the real cracker came at the Pacaembu where this screamer from Paulo Ganso helped São Paulo, without Alexandre Pato who controversially switched between the sides last month, to a sweet 3-2 triumph over Corinthians.

Bad week: Race rights

Brazil insists it doesn't have a racism problem, but the past seven days were bad enough for President Dilma Roussef to intervene.

She came out in support of international midfielder Arouca, who was subjected to racist abuse in the São Paulo state league on Thursday.

Less than 24 hours earlier, officials in a game in the Rio league suffered a similar fate. 'It's inadmissible that Brazil, the country with the largest black population out of Africa, has racism issues,' Rousseff said. 'We are going to take racism on.'

Still got it: David Beckham plays football on the Rio beach

Still got it: David Beckham plays football on the Rio beach

Remember me: David Beckham (England... and the world)

It's mid-March in a World Cup year. So now's about the time that we should be moving from busy chatter to full-blown, hand-me-the-hype-machine debate about David Beckham's place on the England plane, right?

But these are changed times and for the first World Cup since Italia '90 (there was no debate to be had in 1994), there is only the sound of silence.

Instead, Becks got his own plane and arrived in Brazil early - this week in fact. Savouring retirement, the former skipper was in Rio filming a commercial and generally being mobbed wherever he went. Because some things will never change.

Travellers tip: Bin the habit

Litter is a pretty touchy subject in Brazil these days so don't go adding to the problem. And whatever you do, don't follow the lead of Rio's mayor.

Eduardo Paes channelled his inner Boris this week when, in the midst of a rubbish collectors strike that left the city stinking through Carnaval, he was caught tossing away trash with abandon. As the video below shows, he really put his heart into it.

High speed: Beckham rides a motorbike as part of filming for a new advert that took place in Rio

High speed: Beckham rides a motorbike as part of filming for a new advert that took place in Rio

Rubbish: Despite their best efforts, Rio de Janeiro still has a big problem with refuse around the city

Rubbish: Despite their best efforts, Rio de Janeiro still has a big problem with refuse around the city


Amazon forecast: How's the weather up in Manaus?

Wet, wet, wet. The stadium may finally be open but the skies have also been wide open for much of the past week with some serious flash flooding. Maybe Roy had the right idea getting around by boat.

Follow Joe's exploits in Brazil on Twitter @JoeCallaghan84 

 

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DM CONTINUE TO BLOCK MY VIEWS WHICH ARE COMPLETELY ABOVE BOARD SO THEY CAN PUT ON THEIR OWN SPIN ON THINGS.AND THEY SAY ITS A PUBLIC PLATFORM,HA,HA.TRY THE D.EX. OR OBS. MUCH MORE ACCOMMODATING AND FAIR.

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The media is always showing the bad things about Brazil, but never the good things!

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What good things !

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I wish Beckham would hit Rio. He deserves a good smack.

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