Brazil fans await better play, Australia fights for qualification
19/6/2006 14:38
Brazil's soccer fans are still awaiting superstar player Ronaldo Nazario to
show his killer instinct, while Australia, who lost 2-0 to Brazil on Sunday, are
hoping their team will qualify for the next round of the 2006 World
Cup. Ronaldo, known as "The Phenomenon", famously arrived for training
overweight, and has only supplied an assisting pass to a Brazilian goal. In
the game against Australia, neither Ronaldo, nor Brazil had a foot on the
accelerator. As in previous World Cups, the green-and-yellow Brazil team used a
minimum of effort to qualify for the second round of the Cup. Sunday's
two-goal win, following their previous 1-0 victory over Croatia, mean that
Brazil has qualified, but the crowd jeered anyway, because the audience expected
the spectacular Brazil tactics known as "the beautiful game". Brazil's rivals
agree that Carlos Alberto Perreira, the team's manager, has opted for defensive
strategy -- keeping out goals at the expense of scoring. Croatia and
Australia both expected other tactics, filling the mid-field with defensive
players giving up on attacking play. Both teams opted for a strategy that split
their teams in two: defenders on one side and isolated attackers waiting for a
chance to counter attack. Australia's Dutch manager, Gus Hiddink, who has
worked hard to get Australia into three World Cups and secure the team a 3-1 win
over Japan in this Cup, got his tactics wrong on Sunday. He had expected an
attack from Brazil's strongest four attackers: Adriano, Ronaldo, Ronaldinho and
Robinho. With one win and one loss, Australia now has to win a place in the
second phase by beating Croatia, while Brazil is almost certain to get stronger
as time goes on. As for Ronaldo's weight, time and success will have to show
his critics that he was wrong.
Xinhua news
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