July 9, 2014 6:52 AM

The World Cup semifinals: Brazil buys a roll of stamps and mails it in

You could have heard a pin drop in the stadium at Belo Horizonte. After 62 straight competitive home matches, Brazil was about to go down to defeat- utterly, ignominiously, and completely. In a game the likes of which will probably never again be seen in World Cup competition, Germany dismantled Brazil 7-1 in the first semifinal match. Yes, you read that correctly. To say that Germany disassembled the Brazilians with ease would be to offer the host nation an unwarranted degree of charity. Brazil was humiliated…on the world’s biggest stage. Coming into the tournament, the smart money was on Brazil; as the host nation and a perennial world power, it seemed the stars were aligned for Brazil to reclaim the World Cup on home soil. Yesterday, when that dream was still alive, they just…quit. After giving up the first goal to the Germans in the 11th minute, Brazil- never renowned for playing tight, lock-down defense under the best of circumstances- stopped defending their goal. Julio Cesar, Brazil’s goalkeeper, was left on an island while the defense in front of him waved Germans through like a toreador.

It was about as embarrassing a World Cup semifinal as you could imagine. Germany scored five goals in 18 minutes, and Brazil surrendered faster than the Italian Army. The outburst and the time frame were astonishing enough, but the Germans truly made Brazil look foolish, running circles around Brazilian defenders in what ESPN commentator and former Scottish international Steve McMannaman charitably called “amateur hour.” I’ve coached high school JV teams that played with more passion and purpose. By halftime, it looked as if Germany was playing the Faeroe Islands reserve side 11 v. 9.

ESPN and fans in Belo Horizonte and around the world were primed for what looked as if it would be a classic battle between two historical soccer powers. Germany- clinical, precise, and bloodless- had shown glimpses of vulnerability during the tournament and managed only a 1-0 defeat of an overmatched U.S. squad. Brazil- famed as the inventors of the “beautiful game,” a style of play based on passion, creativity, and individual expression- was playing at home in front of millions of passionate fans. They fully expected their national side to avenge Brazil’s nightmarish defeat in the 1950 World Cup Final.

I expected a German victory, but I’d be lying if I claimed I expected Brazil to crawl into its shell like a collection of terrified terrapins. No one who knows anything about the game could have foreseen such carnage. Imagine Seattle beating Denver 73-0 in the Super Bowl and you might be able to appreciate the magnitude of Brazil’s surrender. That it happened on Brazilian soil only makes it more shocking.

Regardless of who emerges victorious from the Netherlands-Argentina game today, Germany remains the clear favorite to claim the World Cup championship on Sunday. Brazil will have to lick its wounds and somehow pull itself together enough to play the loser in the 3rd place game on Saturday. After being crucified in the Brazilian media for four days, it’s hard to imagine Brazil’s player being in a frame of mind conducive to giving full effort and making the game anything but an excruciating exhibition of lethargic, uninspired soccer.

I don’t know that Brazil is truly as bad as it looked yesterday, but there’s every chance Germany might be far better than suspected. We might just be looking at one of the greatest teams in World Cup history. It’s not the most talented or individually brilliant eleven, but the German national team just might the most collectively skilled, cohesive, and competent team ever. They certainly looked the part in Belo Horizonte. I suppose we’ll find out Sunday.

Now Brazil has another soccer nightmare to obsess over for the next 60+ years. Who could have seen that coming?

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This page contains a single entry by Jack Cluth published on July 9, 2014 6:52 AM.

A lesson we could all stand to meditate on was the previous entry in this blog.

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