International Football
AHEAD CLASH WITH NIGERIA; NO WORRIES OVER OUR WINLESS STREAK, SAYS BRAZIL’S CASEMIRO
Brazil may not have won in their last three matches, and while defensive midfielder Casemiro admitted the Selecao haven’t been at their best, most recently in Thursday’s 1-1 draw against Senegal at the National Stadium, he insisted there is no need to panic.
The stalemate comes after a 2-2 draw with Colombia and a 1-0 loss to Peru last month, and the last time Brazil failed to win in three straight games was in 2013.
But Casemiro assured Brazil fans that positive results will return, starting with the friendly against Nigeria on Sunday, when he said at the Brazil Global Tour press conference last night: “We have no doubts it wasn’t our best game.
“Everybody could see that, everyone expects Brazil to win every game we play, and we have an obligation to give our best in every match even if results may be beyond our control.
“But we also have to note these are friendlies, important games against strong African teams we may meet at the next World Cup. We need these games to try different players like Renan Lodi and Matheus Henrique and develop our tactics and strategy to help us for major assignments like the World Cup Qualifiers and Copa America, which we won.
“We are honest and we know that ourselves, that we need to do better. On Sunday, we have another match to show our quality, to show why we are in the national team. We will analyse our match against Senegal to see what we need to improve on.”
These will include getting more goals out of their front line and making sure their defence can keep pace with speedy attackers.
To be fair to the Brazilians, in the bigger scheme of things, the defeat by Peru is the only reverse in their last 19 games since their quarter-final loss to Belgium at last year’s World Cup.
Casemiro said: “The good thing is coach Tite knows what to do. He is trying to play us in roles which we are already playing at club level, and I think this will get the best results from us because we are in the national team for doing well with our clubs.”
Even as a star-studded Brazil side – featuring the world’s most expensive footballer Neymar, and the likes of Roberto Firmino, Gabriel Jesus, Philippe Coutinho and Dani Alves – threw away the lead on Thursday, the second time they have done so in their last three games, Casemiro rejected the notion they face a mental block as they plot to end a 20-year drought and win a record sixth world title at Qatar 2022.
The 27-year-old Real Madrid man said: “I feel 80 per cent of football is a mental game. It is something our coaches always tell us – if we are mentally strong, we can have a great match. We won the Copa America this year, which shows we are on the right track.”
Casemiro did express his surprise at playing in a half-empty stadium against Senegal on Thursday when the official attendance was 20,621, and hopes more will show up tomorrow.
He said: “I don’t know why it happened because the hotels are always full of fans waiting for us. Sure, we want to always play in front of a lot of fans but our responsibility is to do our best whether there is a crowd or not.”
Well-travelled Portuguese coach Paulo Duarte has been named as Guinea’s new coach, less than a month before their next round of World Cup qualifiers.
Duarte, 56, has twice previously coached Burkina Faso and taken charge of Gabon and Togo, while also coaching at clubs in Portugal, France, Tunisia, Angola and Saudi Arabia.
Guinea’s football federation gave no contract details when they made the announcement on Monday, but said they would be looking for Duarte to “restructure their national team”.
Guinea trail leaders Algeria by eight points in their World Cup qualifying group with four games remaining, leaving them with only a slim chance of qualification.
They play Somalia away on September 5 and then Algeria at home on September 8 in their next two qualifiers although a stadium ban means Guinea have moved their home game to Casablanca, Morocco.
-Reuters
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Veteran coach Louis van Gaal says he has been cured of cancer and is keen for a return to the higher levels of the game.
The 73-year-old announced three years ago that he was suffering from prostate cancer, but told a Dutch television talk show, “I’m no longer bothered by cancer.”
When he announced his illness, Van Gaal was the coach of the Dutch national team, but he has not worked since the last World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
“Two years ago, I had a few operations. It was all bad then. But it all worked out in the end. I have check-ups every few months, and that’s going well. I’m getting fitter and fitter,” he said.
Van Gaal, whose career has included stints at Ajax Amsterdam, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester United, reiterated a lack of interest in returning to club management but said becoming the national coach of a top-tier country could tempt him back.
He now serves as a special advisor to Ajax.
-Reuters
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In a compelling twist of football destiny, Davide Ancelotti is stepping into his own spotlight as he begins his first head coaching role at Brazilian club Botafogo—just months after parting ways with his legendary father, Carlo Ancelotti, at Real Madrid.
The 35-year-old has been appointed as Botafogo’s new manager, the club announced on Tuesday, following the sacking of Renato Paiva. Davide, who has spent the last decade working alongside his father at some of Europe’s top clubs—including Bayern Munich, Napoli, Everton, and Real Madrid—has signed a one-year deal with the Rio-based team.
This marks a significant milestone for the younger Ancelotti, whose career has long been shaped by his father’s influence, but who now faces the challenge of carving his own identity on the touchline.
The move comes shortly after both father and son departed Real Madrid at the end of last season, with Carlo taking over the Brazilian national team. Now, in a poetic alignment, father and son find themselves on different paths within Brazilian football—one leading the Seleção, the other steering the fortunes of a storied domestic club.
Botafogo’s decision to appoint Davide follows a controversial parting with Paiva, who was dismissed just days after their exit from the Club World Cup. Though he oversaw a stunning win over Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain, a 1-0 extra-time loss to Palmeiras in the round of 16 proved to be his final act after just four months in charge.
As Davide Ancelotti begins this new chapter, all eyes will be on whether the son of one of football’s most decorated managers can step out from his father’s shadow—and perhaps, in time, build a legacy of his own.
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