Dani Alves, Rafael and Maicon can all lay claim to Brazil's rightback spot.
Dani Alves attracts mixed reactions in Brazil with regard to his Selecao contributions, especially after a discreet 2012-13 season with Barcelona. But even his detractors must now be admitting that his ankle injury, one that sidelined Alves for two recent national team outings, showed how much he was missed -- even though Brazil hammered Australia 6-0 on Saturday and enjoyed a pretty convincing 3-1 triumph against Portugal in Boston on Tuesday.
It's not to say that Maicon didn't do a decent job standing in, the horrendous back-pass that gifted Raul Meireles a goal aside. But the fact that Luiz Felipe Scolari needed to draft in a player who had not being called up since 2011, and whose career had been quite unremarkable since that wondrous treble-winning season with Inter Milan (2010-11), speaks volumes about what many people see as a right-back crisis for the Selecao.
Originally called up as a Plan B, Maicon became a starter when Alves showed up hobbling in Brasilia for the Australia friendly. Before resorting to the former Inter Milan man, Scolari's understudy option was actually a midfielder, Jean, on the back of a successful experiment at Sao Paulo in 2005 when he helped the club win the Libertadores . he also has a Confederation Cup winner's medal now, as a matter of fact.
The right-back conundrum is not only Scolari's problem. His predecessor, Mano Menezes, used Barcelona left-back Adriano on the right to address the question. About now, many of you might be shouting "Rafael da Silva!" Indeed, the Manchester United right-back has arguably done more than enough to deserve a call-up by Scolari, and not just for his role in speeding up Gary Neville's retirement. Nonetheless, Rafael doesn't seem to rank highly in the manager's plans, and that is not simply a reflection of his own back-pass nightmare in the final of the London Olympics, as we will soon see.
Looking to the domestic league, Atletico Mineiro's Marcos Rocha has excelled and even earned his first two caps as a direct replacement for Alves. But Scolari's general strategy seems destined to be a gradual reintegration of seasoned players into a squad that's still reasonably young and inexperienced in terms of international football. After spending a season loitering at Manchester City, Maicon moved to Roma but is at least getting steady first-team action again.
Back in 2010, both Alves and Maicon were at the peak of their powers. Ironically, in the last World Cup cycle it was Maicon's bullish style that kept Alves out of the first team. Now, however, the feeling is that both will make it to the Selecao almost by default, even though that assessment looks harsh considering Alves' achievements at Barcelona. It looks likely that Brazil will be going with both veterans to the next World Cup, unless some younger players make a statement loud enough on the pitch for Scolari to reconsider.
Based on historical evidence, fans shouldn't hold their breath: Two of the five Brazil players with at least 110 caps are right-backs.
It's not to say that Maicon didn't do a decent job standing in, the horrendous back-pass that gifted Raul Meireles a goal aside. But the fact that Luiz Felipe Scolari needed to draft in a player who had not being called up since 2011, and whose career had been quite unremarkable since that wondrous treble-winning season with Inter Milan (2010-11), speaks volumes about what many people see as a right-back crisis for the Selecao.
Originally called up as a Plan B, Maicon became a starter when Alves showed up hobbling in Brasilia for the Australia friendly. Before resorting to the former Inter Milan man, Scolari's understudy option was actually a midfielder, Jean, on the back of a successful experiment at Sao Paulo in 2005 when he helped the club win the Libertadores . he also has a Confederation Cup winner's medal now, as a matter of fact.
The right-back conundrum is not only Scolari's problem. His predecessor, Mano Menezes, used Barcelona left-back Adriano on the right to address the question. About now, many of you might be shouting "Rafael da Silva!" Indeed, the Manchester United right-back has arguably done more than enough to deserve a call-up by Scolari, and not just for his role in speeding up Gary Neville's retirement. Nonetheless, Rafael doesn't seem to rank highly in the manager's plans, and that is not simply a reflection of his own back-pass nightmare in the final of the London Olympics, as we will soon see.
Looking to the domestic league, Atletico Mineiro's Marcos Rocha has excelled and even earned his first two caps as a direct replacement for Alves. But Scolari's general strategy seems destined to be a gradual reintegration of seasoned players into a squad that's still reasonably young and inexperienced in terms of international football. After spending a season loitering at Manchester City, Maicon moved to Roma but is at least getting steady first-team action again.
Back in 2010, both Alves and Maicon were at the peak of their powers. Ironically, in the last World Cup cycle it was Maicon's bullish style that kept Alves out of the first team. Now, however, the feeling is that both will make it to the Selecao almost by default, even though that assessment looks harsh considering Alves' achievements at Barcelona. It looks likely that Brazil will be going with both veterans to the next World Cup, unless some younger players make a statement loud enough on the pitch for Scolari to reconsider.
Based on historical evidence, fans shouldn't hold their breath: Two of the five Brazil players with at least 110 caps are right-backs.
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