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Brazil (Composition)
Five-time world champions, arriving in Germany without three of their stars, will seek to win their second Confederations Cup. They only won this tournament once back in 1997, crushing the Australians 6-0 in the final. However, it seems that this time the Brazilians are taking this tournament more seriously than they did in 2001 and 2003 when Brazil's honor was defended by far from the country's most talented players, who had to acknowledge the superiority of footballers from not so famous football countries like Australia.
"We are going to Germany full of confidence in our abilities and we believe that we will add to our World Cup and Copa America collection," said Brazil's coach Carlos Alberto Parreira before the tournament. Although the Seleção will not have three famous players of this South American country defending their honor this time - Ronaldo, Roberto Carlos and veteran Cafu - it does not seem to cause C.A. Parreira much headache. Madrid's "Real" star Ronaldo himself asked the national team coach to allow him to rest this summer. Parreira agreed, but he did not invite the "Real" striker to the qualifiers for the 2006 World Cup. Asked by journalists about Ronaldo's absence from the national team, C.A. Parreira responded somewhat irritated: "Compared to the national team, all things are irrelevant. Playing for the Brazilian national team is not a sacrifice, service, or obligation. Players must want to play, feel joy, and feel honored. If a player does not feel that way, then no one sees him as a part of the team."
"We could easily put together three top-class national teams," said Ze Roberto representing Munich's "Bayern". C.A. Parreira agreed with him: "Our problem is that in every position we have four fantastic players." Of course, most coaches would call C.A. Parreira arrogant for such statements, as few would see this selection as a problem.
For this reason, the losses of Ronaldo, Roberto Carlos, and Cafu will certainly not be painful for the Brazilians. In the composition, they have two right-backs - Belletti from "Barcelona" and Cicinho from "Sao Paulo" - who should replace Cafu. In Roberto Carlos's position, the Brazilians have "Santos" left-back Leo and "Hertha" defender Gilberto.
Ronaldo, who has recently gained weight and has shown poor form in the eyes of many fans, can be replaced by a whole constellation of stars: from his successor, 21-year-old Robinho, to Milan's "Inter" star Adriano.
In contrast to Ronaldo's behavior, the favorite of Barcelona fans, the FIFA Player of the Year, Brazilian Ronaldinho, personally called C.A. Parreira and asked to be included in the national team despite a very challenging season in Europe.
C.A. Parreira himself claims that the Confederations Cup will be his testing ground before the 2006 World Cup, which will also take place in Germany. Nevertheless, we can be sure that if the opportunity arises, the Brazilians will not miss the chance to take revenge on Argentina for the defeat in their last meeting. Brazil, along with Greece, Mexico, and Japan, will form Group B of the tournament.
