Scolari plots to check Rodriguez
5 July 2014 4:07 AM IST
Luiz Felipe Scolari is renowned for keeping faith in the tried and tested. His preferred starting eleven during the World Cup has largely mirrored that of the team which won the Confederations Cup last year. Now he is considering re-using another old formula for the Selecao’s quarter-final against Colombia in Fortaleza on Friday.
During training at the team’s Granja Comary base Wednesday, Scolari experimented with Napoli center-back Henrique alongside David Luiz and Thiago Silva in the heart of a five-man defence. He also replaced the struggling Dani Alves with Maicon at right-back. The move gave Brazil the Christmas-tree formation that served Scolari so well during Brazil’s triumphant 2002 World Cup campaign in Japan and South Korea.
Then, like now, the decision was based just as much on the resources at his disposal, or lack of them, as the need to quell the opposition’s attacking threat. In the case of Colombia, that threat is personified by James Rodrigues. The 22-year-old Monaco playmaker is the tournament’s top scorer with five goals and is widely considered the World Cup’s best player to date. Any move to bolster the Selecao’s backline would be an obvious attempt to choke the 22-year-old of space and supply.
During training at the team’s Granja Comary base Wednesday, Scolari experimented with Napoli center-back Henrique alongside David Luiz and Thiago Silva in the heart of a five-man defence. He also replaced the struggling Dani Alves with Maicon at right-back. The move gave Brazil the Christmas-tree formation that served Scolari so well during Brazil’s triumphant 2002 World Cup campaign in Japan and South Korea.
Then, like now, the decision was based just as much on the resources at his disposal, or lack of them, as the need to quell the opposition’s attacking threat. In the case of Colombia, that threat is personified by James Rodrigues. The 22-year-old Monaco playmaker is the tournament’s top scorer with five goals and is widely considered the World Cup’s best player to date. Any move to bolster the Selecao’s backline would be an obvious attempt to choke the 22-year-old of space and supply.
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