I would like to get that I am a Brazilian League fan out of the way first. Second I will say I don’t jump on any band wagon that just has the word Brazil and soccer labeled on it. I’ve been sold already.

 

Brazilian soccer is in my mind because they have earned their place, not for any other reason. This Mongoose lived down there for awhile, so this is not an animal looking in through a window and saying I like that in there.

 

Any league that week-in-week-out produces more controversy, passion, and goals then any other league in the world, deserves at least 5 minutes of any soccer fans time. Do you agree?

 

If you look at any week during the Brazilian league season, it would be sacrilege to see any score line with a 0 in it. This is the land where goalkeepers score more goals in a season then American midfielders, no lie.

 

Now that we have a little background into the Brazilian league soccer, let’s talk about a specific game that has just passed. If you look at any league in the world, the most sought after game, if it actually occurs during the season, is the number 1 team versus the number 2. Well, that is happening now, but these teams are not getting together to play in a simple league match to see who will go top of the table—the winner of this match will be crowned Champion of South America.

 

Yes, two Brazilian teams have fought their way through 36 other teams from every country in South America to battle to be Kings of the Continent. The teams, who will contest this Copa Libertadores Final, are number 1 in the league, Sao Paolo [last year’s Copa Champions] and number 2 team, Internacional, a team who has solidified themselves as a Brazilian team to beat.

The champion will be determined in normal international format—one game home, and one away (ida y vuelta in spanish).

 

Internacional (Inter) has surprisingly set themselves up for some early drama. They have taken the first leg 2-1 at Sao Paolo’s home, which puts them in the drivers seat for the crown. There cannot be any chicken counting before they’re hatched though. A characteristic of Brazilian soccer is that pressure and odds do the opposite to teams. Teams with more pressure on them perform better and the upset is always in play. Teams almost thrive with the chips stacked against them—that is why this league is so exciting.

 

Another plus is the controversy. As I am watching the second leg of this final, Inter has collected yellow cards in the 3rd and 6th minutes for elbows and tackles flying, along with the whole game being stopped on a count of to much smoke form flairs in the 15th.

 

What a sight, a coach giving direction to his captain, who has come to the sidelines and behind them smoke thick as a dense fog in a Scottish bog. Fans jumping, cheering, and of course frothing, as the game is starting to get red hot!

 

Inter just must hold a tie to win the trophy, but a mistake from Sao Paolo’s goalkeeper Rogerio Ceni has gifted Inter an extra soft cushion to make the total score over both legs 3-1 going into the half time break.

 

Will Sao Paolo answer the call? Or, will they have to turn over their crown? They know its time to turn on the Brazilian flavor and turn the volume up to a fever pitch.

 

Well step one is to put the ball in the back of the net, and in the 51st minute, the heat is fully applied, Sao Paolo scores and makes this game 1-1 and 3-2 on aggregate (total over both games).

 

Inter has a response though. In the 65th minute, Tinga breaks the goal-line with a short header, orchestrated from a cool chip into the box, which lead to a header, keeper save, and a mini cross that gave Tinga a 3-yard baby header. 4-2 on aggregate, but I promised you controversy, and with Tinga’s goal, he lifted his shirt over his head. The ref saw that as infringing on the rule of goal celebrations and promptly expelled the Inter striker. That red card throws the Paolista’s a life line, one that comes with the territory.

 

With that line, Sao Paolo takes over the game—setting up life and liberty in their offensive third. If you have nails, it is time to bite them, but this is no different then 90% of Brazilian games. The pace of skill, the offensive creativity, no league unless you are in the African tribe zone, can bring this much color to the field.

 

86th minute, the fever breaks as the Inter keeper crumbles under crazed chaos and creates a blunder which leads to the tying goal. Oh man, if I wasn’t used to this kind of stuff every week, my heart would need a timeout.

 

Sao Paolo smells blood, and Inter barricades themselves in the box, as cross after cross continues to rain down. Both teams are Brazilian and are masters at time wasting and time gaining. The commentator is getting hoarse; he hasn’t stopped talking since the 65th minute.

 

We are into injury time, and Rogerio Ceni, Sao Paolo goalkeeper, is so desperate he has dribbled the ball to midfield and almost loses it. Both coaches are praying to God as the last corner of the game is kicked. The ball rings off of an Inter defender for another corner, but the ref has had enough and blows the game off. Oh man! Inter is the South American Champions, fans are crying in the stands. It seems that every Inter fan has brought flares as the stands seem to be on fire.

 

Don’t think this is a once a year occurrence—two other Brazilian teams will play with the same passion, same enthusiasm, same innovation as these two teams, who yet again have earned my respect.

 

By the way 80% of Inter, the winning team cried. That is soccer “is life!”

This entry was posted on Saturday, August 19th, 2006 at 4:07 am and is filed under Soccer World. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.