Football Dissected

Brazil against Peru looked like an easy fixture for the Samba Kings on paper, seeing as the Brazilians are over 50 places above their South American counterparts in the FIFA world rankings. But, in reality, it was anything but easy on Sunday. Playing away from home in their 3rd World Cup qualifier of this campaign, Brazil looked very ordinary, which is something that is becoming a norm about the 5-times World Cup winners and the only nation to have qualified for every single World Cup. They may have beaten Ecuador 5-0, but, as Paraguay proved this week with their 5-1 crushing of Ecuador, it seems Ecuador were just that poor that night and the result had nothing to do with the brilliance of Brazil.

On Sunday, Peru’s starting line up was full of attacking talent with the likes of Solano and Pizarro, a clear indication to everyone that they were going for their first win so far of this long, 18-game qualifying campaign. And they started the better team. For the first quarter of an hour, the Brazilians were pegged back in their own hour as Peru dominated possession. They attempted to take advantage of this possession with their short quick passing through midfield and to the wings, creating a few chances early on. Brazil, meanwhile, looked completely lost and out of sorts. Star men Ronaldinho, Kaka and Robinho were unable to find their rhythm and, whenever any of them received the ball, Peru’s players were quick to close them down in twos and threes.

Brazil were finding it hard to match the beat Peru had set, conceding possession with lazy passing, low concentration and over-elaborate play. Peru remained tight and compact, allowing very little to trouble their keeper Diego Penny. But CSKA Moscow striker Vagar Love created Brazil’s first chance. Stealing the ball from a Peruvian player just outside the box, Vagar Love dribbled away through Peru’s defence to only see his strike go inches wide of the far post. But in the end, it was a moment of sheer brilliance from World Player of the Year nominee Kaka that gave Brazil the lead. Towards the end of the first half, with Peru tiring from the pace they had set out to play at, Kaka received the ball yards outside of the box and in a just one moment, he gave a master class of scoring a wonderful goal. With the outside of his right foot, he hammered the ball and it curled right and straight into the back of the net, leaving Peru’s Diego Penny awestruck. And Kaka had another chance just before half-time to put Brazil two goals to the good. Getting onto the end of a wonderful pass from Ronaldinho, Kaka burst into the box, opened his body and chipped the ball cleverly, only for Penny to tip the ball over.

In the second half, Brazil continued their journey to find a pattern to their play. Kaka and Ronaldinho arrived to the party at last, linking up here and there when they were surrounded by Peruvian players. Ronaldinho’s playmaking qualities emerged from the dark shadows, his pass finding its way to Vagar Love in a fantastic through ball only to have Penny come out and collect. But Peru kept knocking on Brazil’s door, their counterattacking and simple pass-and-move strategies working well against the Brazilian defence. Yet Brazil kept the door shut – for a while. A Peruvian corner was cleared out of Brazil’s box and the ball landed in the path of Juan Vargas, who then hammered the ball low and hard with his left-foot into a crowded penalty area. Andrés Mendoza lifted his leg up and the ball hit Lúcio’s right leg. With Brazil’s Julio Cesar diving to his left for the original shot, the deflection made the ball spin down the middle of the goal and into the net.

And from then on, it was anybody’s game. Man City playmaker Elano and Sevilla’s Luis Fabino, who’s in brilliant form this season with his 14 goals in 15 games, were brought on, but neither made a significant impact. Peru kept the pressure on, attempting to pass their way through Brazil’s defence, only to have the likes of Lúcio and Juan shut the door. Meanwhile, Brazil went for the winner late on. A corner taken by Ronaldinho was headed against the crossbar by Juan in the dying seconds of the game.

On paper, a 1-1 draw looks like a good result for Peru against the mighty, football superpower of Brazil, but, in truth, they should have won the game. They created the better chances, their passing was more efficient and effective, they had more possession and, in front of their own fans, they were the better team overall. Brazil were lucky to have got anything from the match, especially away from home. They move onto 5 points from 3 games (a disappointing draw against Colombia, a 5-0 hammering of Ecuador and this draw) and on Wednesday they come up against a very good Uruguayan side that drew 2-2 with Chile this weekend, have lost 1-0 to Paraguay and have trounced Bolivia 5-0. At the same time, Peru, who have taken just 2 points from 3 games (a 0-0 draw with Paraguay, a 2-0 defeat to Chile and thi draw) travel to face an Ecuador team that will be glad they have veteran centre back Ivan Hurtado back from suspension.

Round 3 South American World Cup Qualification results:

Brazil 1 - Peru 1 - (Kaka 40), (Juan Vargas 71)
Chile 2 - Uruguay 2 - (Marcelo Salas 59, 70), (Luis Suarez 41, Sebastian Abreu 81)
Argentina 3 - Bolivia 0 - (Sergio Aguero 41, Juan Riquelme 57, 74)
Colombia 1 - Venezuela 0 - (Ruben Bastos 82)
Paraguay 5 - Ecuador 1 - (Nelson Valdez 8, Cristian Riveros 26, 87, Roque Santa Cruz 50, Nestor Ayala 82), (Ivan Kavides 79)