Brazil 2014: The Final

All of my previous posts during this World Cup have had a theme to them, but for this final post I am choosing to focus solely on the football and specifically tonight's final in Rio between Germany and Argentina, the third time that the two have faced in this fixture. It will be a huge event after all, and I for one can't wait for it to start!

Before the tournament started, my prediction was that Argentina would win the whole thing so I'll be supporting them tonight. They haven't played quite as I expected them to if I'm honest, but they just keep winning and that's all that you need to do. They have the potential to be extremely dangerous going forward with their superstar attackers, and hopefully they will show that against Germany.
Argentina's route to the final has seen them top their group ahead of Bosnia, Nigeria and Iran, before beating Switzerland 1-0 after extra time, Belgium 1-0 and then winning on penalties against Holland in the semi-final after a 0-0 draw. They certainly haven't been tearing teams apart, but with 3 clean sheets in a row it seems others are struggling to break them down. When you don't concede often and have Lionel Messi and co attacking for you,  there is no limit on how far you can go.

How will they line-up? Argentina usually play a 4-2-3-1 formation, as was mentioned in a previous post, so keep an eye out for that. They have changed their personnel throughout but for tonight I expect them to start with the following: Romero; Zabaleta, Garay, Demichelis, Rojo; Mascherano, Biglia; Di Maria, Messi, Lavezzi; Higuain.

The star for them you would expect will be Messi, arguably the best player in the world currently, and for him to lift the trophy as captain would be a fantastic moment. I think that if it did happen, it would be widely suggested that Messi is the greatest ever. The other man that I think will have a big impact on the result is Angel Di Maria, a player I rate very highly and who has had a phenomenal 12 months.

On to Germany, the team who have impressed me the most throughout. The development of the German team has been a lengthy process that is finally providing rewards. Their team look very strong all over and everyone seems to contribute rather than relying on 1 or 2 like other teams seem to. Just look at their semi final result winning 7-1 against a much fancied Brazil, and 4-0 win over Cristiano Ronaldo's Portugal side to see how good they are!
Their route to the final has seen them qualify from their group with 7 points (Portugal, USA and Ghana the other teams), before defeating Algeria 2-1 after extra time, France 1-0 and then their magnificent 7-1 win against Brazil to get them into the final. They have scored a quite incredible 17 goals already which shows their attacking ability with goals coming from all over their team, with Miroslav Klose getting the headlines after breaking the record for goals scored in World Cup history with 16 now.

Germany tend to pack their midfield, and with the quality they have you can see why. I think they will play with the same team that started against Brazil in the last match, which would be a 4-5-1as follows: Neuer; Lahm, Hummels, Boateng, Howedes; Schweinsteiger, Khedira, Kroos; Muller, Klose, Ozil.

It is hard to say that Germany have a stand out player really. Toni Kroos and Thomas Muller have been very impressive in this tournament but I think that midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger is going to be very influential tonight if he plays. I will say that I think Argentina can attack the left back area as I feel Germany's left back Howedes (who I'm sure isn't actually a left back) is the weakest part of their team.

I'm predicting 2-2 at the end of 90 minutes, with Argentina going on to win it in extra time. Whatever happens the scenes tonight in Rio are going to be fantastic viewing and will live long in the memory of all.

New Introductions: Goal-Line Technology and Vanishing Spray

This year's tournament has seen the introduction of two new ideas into the International game; goal-line technology and a favourite of mine, vanishing spray. the idea behind them is to obviously assist the match referees deal with debatable issues and to prevent players from encroaching when defending free-kicks or moving the ball after the referee measures out 10 yards.

Vanishing spray, bring it to English football?

Goal-line technology has been a topic that has been discussed for years now as something that needs to be brought into the game somehow. In fact had it been in use during the last World Cup in South Africa, England would have rightfully been helped by it with Frank Lampard's 'goal', and who knows how the defeat to Germany would have panned out as a result. It has actually been used in England briefly in recent times, but not in a major tournament before now.
The system that is being used in Brazil is called GoalControl, a collection of 7 high-speed cameras per goal. These cameras track the flight of the ball and ultimately detect whether or not the the ball has crossed the line, before sending a message to the referee's watch, almost like a notification on your phone. It is a simple enough process in my eyes and has shown in this World Cup to be effective. In the group match between France and Honduras, a goal was given correctly to France via the use of GoalControl. The on screen video showed that the ball hadn't originally crossed the line after the shot hit the post, but after hitting the Honduras goalkeeper it did in fact go over the line.
in terms of being the future of football, I'm all for it personally. It doesn't take any time to make the decision (it takes less than a second to notify the referee) and helps to get the correct result. Other sports have successfully introduced technology; rugby, tennis and cricket for example, so why not gradually introduce it into professional standards of football on a greater scale than just major competitions?

The vanishing spray is a brilliant idea in my opinion. As someone who takes free-kicks for my teams when I play, I personally get frustrated when you can see opposition players coming closer than they should be and ultimately making it harder for you. So for me the idea is fantastic as it enables the free-kick to be as advantageous to you as it is meant to be.
The spray itself is made up mainly of water and butane gas in an aerosol can, with the butane gas expanding when the pressure is changed during the spraying action. The substance we see on the pitch is butane 'droplets' that are covered in water, with the butane eventually evaporating.
Future of football? Definitely. The idea is so simple that it is surprising that it hasn't been used in major tournaments before. It also is easy enough for the referee to have a can strapped to their waist for the game, and shouldn't be an expensive process. Reportedly the vanishing spray is going to be used in the Champions League next season, and is being considered by the Premier League, which just shows the impact that it has had.

I have been very impressed by these new introductions, they are certainly beneficial to matches and I think that many seem to have the same opinion. The next step that is needed is to integrate them into more competitions, not just the World Cup.

Tactics: Out With The Old, In With The New?

As time has moved on, so has the footballing world, and tactics that teams employ change with it. Gone are the days where near on every team will play a bog-standard 4-4-2 formation, with the likes of Gary Neville and David Beckham playing down one side. Instead there is now the growing use of formations such as a 4-2-3-1, almost as if they are the fashion.

As things stand, the teams remaining in the World Cup are Brazil, Colombia, France, Germany, Holland, Costa Rica, Belgium and Argentina. Of what I have seen, none of these teams use a standard 4-4-2, instead favouring approaches that allow for more fluid attacking moves or the ability to be strong defensively. The 4-2-3-1 for example, is based on the idea that it is harder for defences to mark an attacking midfielder who operates in the gap between defenders and midfielders, and therefore they should be able to find more space to be a playmaker for their team. It is a formation that has been used fantastically by the likes of Real Madrid and Chelsea in recent times at club level, and is one that looks to be working well Internationally too. Brazil and Argentina, two of the pre-tournament favourites, are big advocates of it, and maybe they are right to be?

A simple image of the popular 4-2-3-1 formation

Another tactic that is being adopted by some teams in this tournament is the use of 3-5-2, with the emphasis on counter attacking football. Holland produced a shock result when they won 5-1 against holders Spain in their first game using this system, and have had more success since. Mexico are another who enjoyed some success with it, progressing out of their group ahead of a strong Croatia, and then the surprise package of Costa Rica have used an adaptation of it extremely well. Be honest, who thought they would get this far?!

What about England? Like I mentioned, back in the David Beckham era it was always a given that we would play 4-4-2, with the famous question of 'who will play in our problem position of left midfield?' In recent times though we have tried to make use of this 4-2-3-1 but just haven't been able to gain much success with it, as our performances in the World Cup showed (although we looked fairly good in qualifying). I feel that this is the right way for England to go, and would personally love to see a front four include Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Raheem Sterling regularly in upcoming England games.

So although you obviously want your team to play an attractive brand of football, maybe going with a solid back line and playing a more reserved style of football is the way to go? Move the ball quickly when you have the chance and be hard to break down sounds easy enough but the ability to actually succeed with this approach is admirable. I guess we will have to wait and see what approach managers will take in the later stages if the tournament and the new domestic seasons.

International Support: A Student Experience

As you would expect at University, particularly in countries such as England, you meet students from many different nations. I have made friends who are Portuguese, Italian, Ghanaian and Nigerian for example, who naturally support their respective nation, not England like me. Of course there are more International Students, or those who live in England but come from elsewhere, than that at UOB. These are just people whose paths have crossed mine. What is apparent from big competitions such as the World Cup, is that you learn that every nation has their own way of supporting.

English fans are often associated with being drinkers when it comes to football, and a rowdy bunch too. 'The Barmy Army'  as we apparently are. I think that comes from being a very passionate set of fans. I'm no different when I watch England, I like to go to the pub to watch and support, and those I have met at UOB have been the same. In other words we get to have 'one or two' and shout at a TV screen in Bedford High Street together, before letting everyone else know of our pride if we do well.

However, you do notice that other countries do things slightly differently. I have found out for instance that the Italians are very family orientated and so, although it's not strictly what all Italians do, will have gatherings that coincide with the game. Someone I know from UOB doesn't even like football yet still did this!  The African nations tend to be big into their music and dance when they support their team, something that was emphasised to me when I came to UOB and meeting new people. This is similar to those of countries like Brazil, who again are a very passionate group and like to make it into a party atmosphere, which seems to make them smile all game!

Obviously being English means I am more aware of England's team than others, but the biggest thing I have picked up on at university about other teams is the attitude that their fans have. Although English fans are very passionate, we are also a bit negative towards ourselves through the expectation that our players should perform better than they do. I personally don't get too excited about watching us play in some games because we aren't always as positive as we can be in our style of football. Other people can't get enough of seeing their team play, they just love it! It really means a lot to them and events like the World Cup really highlight this to us all. I think this comes from having lower expectations than those of English fans and it allows them to enjoy the experience more.

Are the pitches causing injuries?

Before the World Cup had started there was a lot of talk about the quality of the facilities and if they would be ready for the tournament. The pitches themselves were discussed at length as to how they would affect teams in terms of style of play and so on, but what about injuries, are the pitches having a big influence on the amount we are seeing?

The condition of the Manaus pitch, 2 days before  the World Cup

It has been evident throughout the tournament that nearly every pitch is in poor condition, which you would expect would make it easier for players to injure their ankles in almost any movement in the game. However, this isn't something that we have seen much of, or at least isn't an injury that is ruling players out of further matches, in fact the only player who has been so far is Daniel Opare of Ghana. This would suggest that the pitches are in good condition, right? Not necessarily. In fact Jose Mourinho, the current Chelsea manager, has had a bit of a rant about the quality of them because of the effect it has having on performances, but he also hasn't mentioned injuries.

What we are seeing is a large amount of hamstring and thigh strains so far, common injuries in football. I recall the USA striker Jozy Altidore picked up a hamstring strain when sprinting after a through ball in their first game.
What you will learn at UOB is that these strains are caused by over-stretching when completing explosive movements with poor coordination, such as sprinting or striking the ball, and could occur at any time. Obviously this can be applied to all sports, not just football.

Jozy Altidore of the USA suffers a hamstring injury against Ghana

I would personally say that I don't think the pitches are really affecting the amount of injuries that are occurring, they are just affecting the quality of matches as they are not in pristine condition. Like I've said previously, the individual player injuries (at the time of writing) back this up, although I guess it could be argued that these are just recorded injuries.

Physios: what do they actually do?

One of the big stories from the England camp in this World Cup was one which pretty much summed up our campaign in my eyes; embarrassing. Physio Gary Lewin managed to dislocate his ankle after reportedly tripping over a water bottle during the celebrations of Daniel Sturridge's equalising goal against Italy, causing him to have to return home to England. This has pushed the role of a physio further into the public eye, bringing us to the big question, what does a physio actually do?

Gary Lewin suffered his bizarre injury against Italy

In the modern game the role of a physio is massively important in aiding a player's performance. There are numerous jobs and responsibilities that a physio will do such as identifying injuries and treating the issue. After identifying the injury the treatment phase will start and a rehabilitation programme will be devised to enable the player to return from injury as quickly as possible with minimal risk of the injury reoccurring. In top level sport in particular, it is common that the rehab programme will be in collaboration with a fitness coach.
A physio also has an extra responsibility of providing mental support to a player, almost like that of a sport psychologist, to give them the belief and confidence that they will overcome their injury and that they can still perform at a high standard, something which is of huge importance when it comes to longer term injuries like knee ligament damage. Unfortunately for England, this is something that Uruguay's Luis Suarez received very successfully from his physio, Wayne Ferreira, during his treatment and he was able to go on to score twice, without even being match-fit.

How could a UOB student step in? Well, there are multiple aspects that are taught to students that  would help. Obviously anyone at UOB who has studied on the Sports Therapy course, or even the sports injuries unit, could be capable of identifying injuries and going on to treat them. Maybe working with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in his rehab? Those who have studied a science course/unit would also have an understanding through their knowledge of the human body. Also, a lot of the mental support aspect that is provided to players is learnt in sports psychology modules at UOB. So as you can see a lot of the students at UOB would have an area that they could specialise in.

Gary Lewin's recent incident has further highlighted that it isn't just the players on the pitch that count, in fact there are different ways of going to a World Cup, yet still being part of the team. It is important to remember that to push yourself to the elite level, and the possibility of going to a World Cup, you need to work hard and gain experience.

Is the heat in Brazil affecting the player's attitudes?

A lot of the pre-World Cup build up has been surrounding the issue of the heat and humidity and 'how are the England players going to deal with it'? In the rainforest surrounded area of Manaus in particular, where England played their opening game against Italy, it was around 33 degrees and 76% humidity, which seems crazy when you're used to English weather! Obviously these conditions make it harder for all of the teams, not just England, but how does it affect them and their attitudes during games?

The Arena Amazonia, Manaus

We have learnt in lectures at UOB that, when exercising in the heat, increased sweating and therefore increased fluid and electrolyte loss will occur. As a result, maintaining high performance levels should be harder, but the stars playing at the World Cup should be in better physical condition than your average performer like me, so the expectation would be that the likes of Rooney, Sturridge and co will deal with these difficulties better than I would. The most obvious way of doing so would be to maintain hydration during the matches at every opportunity.


It has already been seen that players are looking to get fluids back into their system at every chance they can during the matches, to the extent that players are taking the attitude of feigning injuries almost every time they get fouled. This may seem pathetic to some but believe me, having experienced the conditions of Manaus personally, you really do need to keep hydrated and take a breather when you can! By taking this attitude, they allow a chance for everyone to re-hydrate and rest for a moment, a very wise move in my opinion to be successful.


It hasn't all been good though in Brazil. We've seen players waving the imaginary card to the referee to try and get opposition players booked or sent off, which although it isn't cheating, is poor sportsmanship. I for one am glad that English players don't tend to take this approach and wish it was punished more than it is - a guaranteed yellow card for the player who does it perhaps? However, as bad as it is, it is quite a clever way of increasing the chances of winning. The idea is that if a team goes down to 10 men, they will have to work harder and will therefore tire quicker, making it easier to win.


So to answer the original question, we have seen changes in attitudes, but to be honest nothing more than what was expected before the tournament started, and I imagine it was expected by most.


Anything to win. A simple idea, but to me, there are some things that you just don't do purely for the spirit of the game. Looking after your body, I'm all for it, but play the game like it should be played!