The only way Brazil, as hosts, favourites and five-time champions, could be considered more likely to win the World Cup this summer is if they started each game with a lead.
At last summer’s Confederations Cup, that often appeared the case. Such was the ferocity with which Brazilian fans recited their national anthem last year, it affected the whole flow of the game.
The team in canary yellow enjoyed an obvious edge, the opposition side seemed to shrink and at least one referee – Howard Webb – said he felt “really moved”.
The result was that in three of Brazil’s five matches, including the final against world champions Spain, they opened the scoring inside the first 10 minutes.
Positivity had proved key: it eased the pressure on Brazil’s players and calmed the concern in the stands.
In the first match, against Japan, Neymar needed less than four minutes to hit a crisp, collector’s-item volley past the opposition goalkeeper.
Still, inside that first brief period signs of impatience had been evident at Estadio Nacional.
An ominous, anxious murmur had filled the arena, but when the ball struck the back of the net, jubilation erupted. Such joy and support remained for the rest of the tournament.
Luiz Felipe Scolari, the Brazil coach, knows his side must produce a similarly strong start against Croatia tonight to ensure home advantage does not turn into home disadvantage.
During their final warm-up match, against Serbia last week, Scolari’s side were booed by their own fans in the first half after failing to click in Sao Paulo.
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Never before have Brazilians been so conflicted ahead of a World Cup. In some circles, it has become almost condemnable to show support for the football team.
At a concert in Sao Paulo on Sunday night, an Iranian band trying to curry favour among the locals said they hoped Brazil would win, only to be subjected to jeers and boos.
The well-documented issues the host country suffers – lack of suitable health care, poor public transport, high crime rates, inequality, corruption – have caused nationwide protests and understandable dismay.
As billions of Brazilian reals are spent on stadiums, the population’s standard of living has not sufficiently improved.
For the first time, arguably, the outside world is beginning to understand that, while Brazilians adore football, the adage of love being blind does not apply. Football may be the primary focus of many, but it does not make them forget more pressing issues.
For Scolari and the rest of the national team, the hope is that when they take to the pitch at Arena Corinthians, the love will overcome the let-down.
If ever a prompting of positivity was required, today’s date provides it because June 12 is “Dia Dos Namorados” – the Brazilian Valentine’s Day.
On the pitch, things are clearer. Scolari has instilled a self-belief that was absent during the reign of his predecessor, Mano Menezes, and technical director Carlos Alberto Parreira has helped shape defensive solidity.
In 22 games, Brazil have conceded 15 times and just twice in the past nine. As Pele noted while in Dubai recently, his country will, for the first time in memory, contest a World Cup with a team stronger in defence than attack.
That is not to say Brazil are weak in the final third. With Neymar and Hulk playing either side of Fred, Scolari’s three-pronged forward line ticks all the boxes: speed, strength and a technically proficient target man.
Add to the mix the options from the bench, such as the diminutive Bernard, Chelsea’s Willian or Brazil-based Jo, who has shown far greater instinctive qualities for his national team than he ever did during his two seasons in England, and goals are rarely hard to come by.
Since Scolari took charge in December 2012, his side have netted 59 times in 22 games.
This most modern of Brazilian incarnations swarm the opposition and constantly attack but, most importantly, when they play to their strengths, they excite.
For Scolari, winning is everything. For the Brazilian public, winning with attractive football is almost as essential.
The country’s adventurous side of 1982 crashed out in the second round, but they are remembered more fondly when compared to Parreira’s victorious side of 1994, who played cautiously.
With the fans onside, Scolari’s Brazil are capable of winning and winning with style. Without the fans, the pressure and expectations could prove suffocating.
For this reason, a strong start today is essential. After that, there is every chance the favourites will march to a record sixth title.
gmeenaghan@thenational.ae
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