World Cup Diary Day 3: Brazilians say ‘Arigato’ to Nishimura

As hazy heads awoke to the morning of the night before, they took refuge in the headlines that jumped at them from various media outlets.
Unsurprisingly, Brazil's opening World Cup victory against Croatia dominated, although Neymar – the hosts' two-goal hero – had to share the spotlight with the hitherto relatively unknown Yuichi Nishimura.
The Japanese referee, whose ques­­tionable performance prompted outrage in the Croatian camp, received almost as many plaudits as Brazil's golden boy.
"No Apito, Na Bola" read the inside spread of Folha de Sao Paulo, the city's daily newspaper, either side of an image of Neymar, the joyous No 10 on his knees in celebration, arms pointing to the sky. "The Whistle and The Ball".
Lancenet, the sports website, was slightly less discreet, declaring: "It's all ours! World Cup. Neymar. Croatia's goal. Even the ref".
O Globo, the Rio-based newspaper, nodded to Nishimura's contribution with a simple "Arigato".
With so much focus pre-tournament on Neymar, he was always going to feature prominently, no matter his impact. Esportes Estadao's website waxed lyrical about Thursday's brace, noting that, by scoring two goals in 88 minutes, the striker had already eclipsed the World Cup records of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. A bit of Argentina bashing is always welcome here.
For the most part, the opening ceremony and first match were treated as successes, although Globo, the national television channel, was criticised for giving only seconds of airtime to Juliano Pinto, the paraplegic who kicked the tournament's first ball using a mind-controlled robotic exoskeleton. It was designed by a 150-strong research team, led by Brazilian neuroscientist, Dr Miguel Nicolelis, who seemed to care little about its fleeting television appearance, however, tweeting afterwards: "We did it!!!"
jmcauley@thenational.ae
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