NEWS
A selection of FirstTouch's best football writing, brought to you by emerging journalists, collaborators, and fans.
Brazilian team culture and the infectious recipe for success
In exploring what makes the most successful team in the history of football tick, Lovejoy reveals that they are more than a football team.
"Fera" Káingang of the ethnic Káingang, in the village Conda, which gives name to the Chapecoense stadium, on December 02, 2016 in Chapeco, Brazil. Players of the Chapecoense were killed in a plane accident in the Colombian mountains. The Arena Conda, a field of the Chapecoense wretched, owes its name to the leader of an indigenous people who incarnated in the past the fierce character of a hobby that in its origins sat literally on a hill. This humble football field was inaugurated on 24 January 1976, three years after the constitution of the team, with only the green grass, without bleachers that would shelter the players, but under the name of a character that marked his future.
(Dec. 1, 2016 - Source: Buda Mendes/Getty Images South America
Colonization: the blessing from the curse
So when the Portuguese colonized Brazil and restricted all cultural practices in a bid to westernize and tie the Brazilians down, they had no idea that they were initiating the Genesis of a chronic and infectious golden football culture.
As soccer was introduced by those who had seen the western ways, the Brazilians began to play it in their own style (dribbling, creativity and speed being their aim, for which the once head coach Dunga was once criticized). The Brazilians used this style of football as their only link to culture which was a soccer and dance fusion that they often referred to as "Ginga (meaning sway)". Generations were born into this and as soccer became a more prominent part of the entertainment world, Brazil moved in with a fresh and unique dribbling style that marked their place in soccer history. Soccer became more than just a game to them; it became an art, a culture, a way of life and a breath of freedom and hope for every kid in the streets of Rio.
Futsal, a game that focuses on embracing the creativity of what Brazilians call "Ginga" and rewards dribbling and explosive movements was the source of the Brazilian soccer players’ mad skills. Pele once referred to Futsal as a sport that made one think, play fast and the transition to soccer easier. The large population of Brazil, competitive rivalries like Argentina and the winning habit also contributed to Brazil's success in soccer. Skills were nurtured at a tender age to produce some of the world's best players, the most notable being Pele "O Rei", (the king) from a poor family in Mina's Gerais.
"It's simple, soccer in Brazil is like karate in China," said Godwin Munamati, a dedicated Zimbabwean soccer fan.
The Seleção has managed to secure a place in people's hearts beyond Brazil not only because of how soccer is part of their culture but their team spirit, persistence, love and appreciation for the Seleção itself, support from their biggest fans (Brazil, the soccer nation itself) has continued to propel them further despite bumps along the way.
Brazil fans cheer prior to the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil Group A match between Cameroon and Brazil at Estadio Nacional on June 23, 2014 in Brasilia, Brazil.
(June 22, 2014 - Source: Buda Mendes/Getty Images South America)
Teamwork making the dream work
The Seleção has displayed strong team unity on various occasions in and out of the game, on and off the field.
Besides togetherness between the players themselves, the Seleção rallied around a common cause and belief in a higher power. In the 2002 FIFA World Cup after their unexpected win, three players including Lucio and Kaka knelt face down on the field to give thanks to God, followed by an entire team. Several Brazilian players continued with their public display of faith thereafter, like the old saying goes "a family that prays together stays together". When Lucio became captain after the 2006 World Cup defeat, he continued to lead the team through that belief. Lucio always pointed out that life was more than winning and losing, encouraging the team to look beyond every loss,
"Anyone who thinks that he has everything but does not have Jesus doesn't have anything," Lucio once mentioned in an interview, encouraging the team to not let a winning streak of the past or future make them complacent. In addition, an idea of looking at soccer as more than just a game of scoring and whining after every loss was ingrained. It became a religion in which their passion and belief resided, bringing the team together and shielded their bond against the various loses that came and propelled them to a distinct and notable level of their own regardless of wins or losses. Thus Brazil remains the best national team to grace the soccer fields with a combination of humility, faith, creativity and flexibility on the field.
Selflessness and celebration of others' success and appreciation of each member of the Seleção and the Brazilian soccer family as a whole came not only from the players themselves but from the coaches as well. In 2007, coach Dunga focused on de-emphasizing individual players and treated all players as equals no matter how established one was over the other. He gave non-established players from not so popular clubs a chance to join the Seleção, “finding unity in diversity". One of those players was Fabiano who then won top goal scorer in the 2009 FIFA Confederations cup with 5 goals in 5 matches.
Unbeatable? (“a seleção Invicta!”)
The players' passion for the Seleção, the fans' appreciation and positive vibe saw Brazil acquiring five World Cup titles (1958, 1962, 1970, 1994, and 2002), winning the title two consecutive times and becoming the first nation to win the World Cup title outside of its continent. During the 1978 world cup, in one match the field seemed to have been tempered with, in another match the referee seemed to be biased but Brazil remained the only unbeaten team in the tournament. In 2013 they won the FIFA Confederations Cup with Neymar, Fred and Julio Cesar scooping awards when Luiz Felipe Scolari was back as the team's coach .
"Ginga's Karma"
“Moving away from our perceived “weirdness” that makes us completely distinct we risk losing the essence of success, for success stems from that which makes us distinct.”
Neymar (R) and Ronaldinho of Brazil in action during a Brazil training session at Wembley Stadium at on February 5, 2013 in Wembley, England.
(Feb. 4, 2013 - Source: Mike Hewitt/Getty Images Europe)
Brazil began to suffer a dry spell after their 2002 World Cup win. Despite harboring the finest soccer players, they have failed to win a World Cup title since then. Could this be karma punishing Brazil for trying to adjust to the European formalized way of playing soccer while drifting from their precious "Joga Bonita" (play beautiful) concept of Ginga?
One soccer fan even commented on David Levine's article (the origins of la Joga Bonita), "Europeans invented soccer but Brazilians mastered it”, so in essence moving towards Europe’s formalized football skill could have led to the invasion of the dry spell.
Pele, the legendary Brazilian footballer cried over the same issue, saying he was crying over the loss of Brazilian soccer as he knew it, “I cried watching that game and not just because of the score. I cried because I do not know what happened to the joy of Brazilian football. Maybe this summer in the Olympics and Copa America, we can remind the world of how Brazil plays soccer, but it will not be easy. I fear we have lost our way. There is no ginga”. Pele had won the World Cup in 1958, 1962 and 1970 (ESPN) with ginga and he considered Neymar as the only true current ginga player on the squad. Neymar had unfortunately sustained a leg injury at that point. However, the coach at that time was working on bringing the ginga spirit back to the team and the team did begin to regain its stamina with notable Olympic gold medals to its name from 2016.
The movement from the cultural way of playing may have caused a huge drift in the Seleção's team spirit too, leading to questions about their togetherness as a team. “Everybody knows that Brazil has the best players in the world, but do we have the best team in the world? “, the Brazilian sports minister of 1998 once questioned.
A series of failures followed, seeing Brazil becoming the first nation to be eliminated in the first round while holding the World Cup crown in the 1982 World Cup although they were named the greatest team never to win the world cup.
In 2012 they were ranked 11th in the FIFA ranking and this was the first time they were not in the top ten with this position being their lowest since FIFA rankings were introduced.
After the 1-7 semi-final defeat to Germany in the 2014 World Cup, that saw Felipe Scolari resigning, the fans booed their team off the field with Neymar injured and Thiago Silva serving a one-match suspension. This had to be the Seleção’s biggest and most embarrassing defeat. From 2014 to 2016 Dunga returned as coach but failed to return the team's momento and was sacked
Wayne Rooney of England (L) battles for the ball with Ronaldinho of Brazil during the International friendly between England and Brazil at Wembley Stadium on February 6, 2013 in London, England.
(Feb. 5, 2013 - Source: Mike Hewitt/Getty Images Europe)
Never give up (“nunca desistir!”)
After various violent tackles by the Portuguese defenders in the 1966 world cup, Pele had vowed to never play in the World Cup again but he returned in 1970 and they won leading to their squad being named the best ever. The squad consisted of Pele, Captain Carlos Alberto Torres, Jarzinho, Tostao, Gerson and Rivellino.
After going 24 years without winning a World Cup title or even reaching the finals (their best place being third place in 1978) Brazil regained momento and scooped the title in the 1994 and 2002 World cups. After winning the World Cup in 2002, Brazil saw itself suffering another long period of no major titles to date with the exception of their Olympic wins.
However, throughout this dry season which was in turn exacerbated by injuries of major players like Neymar, match suspensions like Thiago's 2014 substitution, coaches resigning and court cases, the fans remained the nation which breathes soccer and the Seleção’s backbone. There were moments when fans felt degraded by the Seleção’s losses and loose hold on their throne but their belief in their winning spirit as the soccer nation and the unity they commanded through soccer refrained them from throwing their love for the Samba Boys into the trash and this kept the team going reminding them that whether they win or lose, they would remain the unique seleção, the heart of soccer, the football nation! o pais do futebol as they would call themselves.
In conclusion, the Brazilian team culture is a vast concept on its own that incorporates the way soccer is indented in their culture with skills that are developed from a tender age. From the way they love and appreciate their national team, to the way they display commendable team spirit and how they never give up but remain proud members of the Seleção even after a trail of miserable and humiliating loses .This has not only created a special place in the hearts of football fans in the soccer nation alone but all over the world, the Seleção’s team culture is infectious and it has propelled them to success in World Cup tournaments and success in capturing people's hearts even when they are losing.
Brazil has become the standard for comparison in African football too,
The Brazil players salute the fans at the end of the FIFA Confederations Cup Brazil 2013 Semi Final match between Brazil and Uruguay at Governador Magalhaes Pinto Estadio Mineirao on June 26, 2013 in Belo Horizonte, Brazil.
(June 25, 2013 - Source: Michael Regan/Getty Images South America)
"Brazilians play smart football which is not all about scores, they emphasize on the importance of skill and dribbling rather than scoring like we do here, Brazil nurtures talent, they are simply good, God blessed them like that, being Brazilian and not being good in soccer actually seems like a shame," commented Gledy and Mufaro Sharara.
I also remember growing up, as a girl, interested more in Barbie dolls than football but I knew that Ronaldinho existed nonetheless and apart from his handsome face and long hair, I knew he had amazing skills and we used to watch his dribbling videos all the time. So basically the Seleção infection has been there for a while and its most probably sticking around as African counties are also incorporating soccer skills development in ECD programs.
“I think we have suffered indeed. We lost but that's sport, winning and losing, we did not want to lose this way but at least the team kept going until the end. At 6-0, at 7-0, they kept going. We have families and people that support us, nobody needs to tell us what that means. I am not ashamed to say I was a member of the team which lost 7-1, I am not ashamed, I am proud of my teammates.”- Emotional Neymar's speech at a press conference after he got injured pretty much sums it all... ir selecao ir! (Go Selecao go!)
FT Hidden Gem Series: Who is Tinotenda Kadewere?
The young Zimbabwe warriors striker is quite just a pin in the haystack of global football right now. But he helped Swedish outfit Djugardens to a an unlikely title, won the COSAFA prize with his nation and got signed by French Ligue 2 side this summer, Le Havre. What we see in him, we have seen in many other younger players that left a mark, he is on the up.
More often than not, people focus on the players that are already known in the most famous leagues in Europe. Not many of us take time to appreciate a rare talent that continues to escape the radar. Look at Jamie Vardy for instance, he shined in England at the age of 28, but who knew about him before then? In this piece, we look at a certain talent from the country of Zimbabwe before he blows up and becomes one of your favorite African players in no time. Here’s what Tinotenda Kadewere is about.
Background
Tino Kadewere was born on the 5th of January in 1996. He started his career at Harare City in the Zimbabwe Premier Soccer League at the age of 18 where he scored 7 goals just halfway into his debut campaign. In 2014, he left Harare City for Djugardens on a loan deal with an obligation to buy him on a 4-year-long deal. It is at the Swedish club that he started to grow not only in terms of his technical abilities but also his physique. Two years down the line, the Zimbabwean striker was a few inches taller and staking a claim for a place in the AFCON games played in Gabon. Although he failed to make an appearance in the tournament, he was inspired by his involvement in the dressing room and he sought to use that experience to push for further success at his club, Djugardens. Tinotenda famously scored 4 goals for Djugardens in a single league match which is a record that had not been matched since 1978. This summer, French Ligue 2 side, Le Havre scooped him from the Swedish team for a fee reported to be in the region of $2.5 million.
Photo: Kenta Jönsson/Bildbryan
On his move
Tinotenda was excited to take the next step in his football career by moving to the French side in July 2018. Who wouldn’t be? This is the country where players like Ronaldinho, Zinedine Zidane, George Weah, Didier Drogba etc. made a name for themselves. This league also worked as a stepping stone for them when they eventually made their big moves to clubs like Real Madrid, Barcelona, AC Milan and Chelsea. This should be very encouraging to the young player who is hungry for success. He said, “It’s good news for me as a footballer to make another step, but it’s also bad news because I don’t know how I will live in France without all these Djurgardens people.” He was obviously emotional about leaving the club that showed faith in him when he was just a teenager and gave him the chance to play European football.
On his attributes
Tino Kadewere’s favorite position is centre forward. He is an Aubameyang-type of a striker who works best on the shoulders of the defense and can use his lethal pace to beat his markers before scoring goals. It is no surprise that he had already scored 8 goals in 12 matches this season with his pace a menace for defenders in the Swedish First Division. His physique has been growing by the years and he no longer looks like someone who could be budged off the ball like many strikers of his age.
Just like many talented players, he is also capable of playing in a number of positions on the pitch. His pace and trickery also warrants him a place on either flanks because Kadewere is confident that he can beat any defender as long as he has the ball in his feet. These attributes are the reasons why he was deployed on the flanks during his High School years. Obviously, he is no Jay Jay Okocha with the ball yet but the sky is the limit for the 22-year-old Zimbabwean. It is easy to see how this type of player can fit in the squads of the big teams around Europe. Real Madrid have one in Lucas Vazquez who comes off the bench as an impact player. Even Arsenal have that in Alex Iwobi who offers something different from the flanks. Maybe Tino could be that for a team like Chelsea in England or Atletico Madrid in Spain.
On his Injury
If you did not know, Tino Kadewere picked up an injury which was later revealed to be internal ligament damage in his left knee. He had this to say about his injury, “It is obviously boring but it is also part of the football at the same time. Now, the only thing that matters to me is to fix this and come back even stronger.” This injury did not scare off interest from Le Havre who still invested in his services despite the fact that the player was facing 8-10 weeks on the sidelines. It is quite rare to find in football that a club pays so much money for a young player let alone someone who is injured. However, they are confident in his ability and potential to become a great player for the club and rightly so. Tino is a player on the rise.
Achievements:
The 22-year old guided his old club, FC Djugardens to the 2017/18 Svenska Cupen on the 10th of May, 2018. He scored four of the 14 goals by the club in the tournament. This trophy was the first title for the club since 2013.
Kadewere won the COSAFA Cup (a tournament organized by the Council of Southern Africa Football Associations) with his nation on the 9th of June 2018 just a month after lifting a trophy with his club. The young forward scored a brace in the final against Zambia and provided one in a 4-2 victory for the Warriors of Zimbabwe.
Messi: Looking Back
Because even GOATs have to take a moment and look back
It has been 17 years since Lionel Messi started playing in the Infantil B in the Barcelona academy. The club have been celebrating this milestone on social by sharing his old videos when the player was learning how to master the art of football before becoming arguably the best player in football history in present day. The 30-year-old’s arrival at Barcelona from Argentina can never be forgotten as he was signed on a napkin. Many clubs like Arsenal came asking for his services during his youth years because they knew the boy had something special. However, this was not common to the eye that watched the first team which had amazing players like Ronaldinho and Eto’o at the time. It did not take time for him to make a statement when he was eventually handed the opportunity in the first team by Frank Rijkaard who was the coach at the time. He has not looked back ever since. The player has gone on to win a record 5 Ballon d’Ors only matched by goal machine Cristiano Ronaldo. Visit the link to read more on the story.