Sports

LONDON –– Brazil failed to win for the first time in 11 games with their own lacklustre midfield as much to blame for the 0-0 draw with Mexico as the inspired goalkeeping performance of Guillermo Ochoa.

Brazil started Tuesday’s World Cup Group A match with a midfield trio of Paulinho, Luiz Gustavo and Ramires, who started on the right in place of usual starter Hulk. Oscar played slightly further forward between the midfield and attack.

But Ramires was taken off at halftime and Oscar was also substituted before the end, while Paulinho looked out of sorts and was lucky to last the whole 90 minutes in Fortaleza.

Manager Luiz Felipe Scolari said he took Ramires off because “he’s an impetuous player who had a yellow card and we didn’t want him getting a red”.

But he cannot have been happy with the way defensive midfielders Luiz Gustavo and Paulinho gave the Mexican attackers far too much space.

The Mexicans let loose with shots from outside the box on several occasions and while most of them flew over they were getting into dangerous positions.

“Brazil need to mark, cut down space and not even let Mexicans think they can take the game to Brazil,” former Brazil player and TV Globo commentator Casagrande said midway through the second half.

“They’re shooting from far out. They’ve been doing this since the start but they’re doing it a lot more in the second half and they are getting a lot of space. The Mexicans are using the space well but Brazil aren’t even getting in a position to shoot.”

Scolari agreed and said he was also having trouble convincing his own players to follow suit and let fly with long-range efforts.

“Sometimes we passed instead of shooting,” Scolari told reporters. “I tell them they sometimes need to have a go, they need to believe in their shooting.”

With a solid looking defence and the attacking trio of Neymar, Fred and Hulk, who had been nursing a thigh problem, appearing set, Scolari’s dilemma ahead of the final Group A match against Cameroon in Brasilia on Monday is who to play in midfield.

Paulinho looks jaded after a disappointing first season in England with Tottenham Hotspurs and Luiz Gustavo also struggled to make an impact against the impressive Mexicans.

He may not want to risk Ramires and a second yellow that would lead to a one-match suspension but he will surely be tempted to give a run out to either Willian or Fernandinho, two players whose English Premier League form last season helped them force their way into the squad at the last minute.

RIO DE JANEIRO — England’s players felt a bit uneasy about being praised back home despite losing their World Cup opener. From now on, they know it’s the results they’ll be judged by, not the entertaining value of their games.

“I don’t want to go home early performing well but not getting results,” Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge said Monday. “It’s the results that count, it’s not about the performances and we realise that as a team as well.”

That doesn’t necessarily mean the team is ready to abandon the attack-minded philosophy employed by coach Roy Hodgson in the 2-1 loss against Italy in Manaus. Avoiding defeat against Uruguay on Thursday in Sao Paulo should keep England’s Group D hopes alive, but a victory will put the team in a more advantageous position going into the final match against Costa Rica.

“I don’t feel we need to change much,” Sturridge said. “I just feel as though maybe we need to get those little bits of luck, a little bit of a break.”

Sturridge started up front against Italy in the central position where Wayne Rooney can thrive. With Rooney on the left flank in the first half, and the right after the break, his bearing on the game was limited apart from setting up Sturridge’s goal. The failure to hit the target extended Rooney’s scoreless run at World Cups to three tournaments, and he looked stone-faced while talking on the training pitch with Hodgson on Monday.

“It could be quite frustrating at times for anyone playing out of position but that’s football and you’ve just got to deal with it,” Sturridge told a briefing at the team’s training camp at the Urca military base in Rio de Janeiro.
“I know Wayne is experienced, he can handle pretty much every situation as he has been through a lot in his career. You say he’s playing out of position but he’s played there plenty of times for Manchester United. He is accustomed to that position.”

Wherever he plays, Rooney will have a “massive impact” against Uruguay, England and Manchester United teammate Danny Welbeck predicted, despite recent performances in the England shirt suggesting otherwise.

“All the forward players at England, they’ve all got the flexibility to move in and around and interchange positions,” Sturridge said. “Obviously Wayne was on the left in the first game and in the second or third game he could be in a different position.

Uruguay gun for ‘unlucky’ England

Still smarting from a shock opening defeat, Uruguay’s coach and captain said on Monday they were working on how to annul England’s speedy strikers in a “life-or-death” Group D clash.

Although last World Cup semi-finalists Uruguay ended surprisingly well beaten 3-1 by Costa Rica, many considered England hard done by in a 2-1 defeat by Italy after one of their best attacking performances under coach Roy Hodgson.

“England deserved better luck,” Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez told reporters after a training session at the team’s hotel in rolling countryside outside Sete Lagaos town.

“The English attackers showed their great technical potential. They’re fast in decision making and running. We have to limit them, because they are going to repeat that offensive style against us,” he added.

Also known for their attacking prowess, Uruguay’s Tabarez declined to confirm if striker Luis Suarez would start against England. The Liverpool forward has recovered from knee cartilage surgery but is short of match fitness and practice.

“It’s a possibility he will play, I can’t say more,” said Tabarez, known as “El Maestro” or “The Teacher” at home.

PORTO ALEGRE, Brazil — Anderson Goncalves Rodrigues was probably the only person not busy rooting for Brazil.

Screaming with delight, waving his green jersey above his head, he ran wild-eyed and whooping.

He had just had his jersey signed by France striker Olivier Giroud and midfielder Paul Pogba at Tuesday's training, where around a dozen or so fans were invited to attend the otherwise closed-doors session.

He didn't even mind that Brazil was playing Mexico at exactly the same time as France was training at Botafogo's Santa Cruz stadium in Ribeirao Preto.

"I don't care if I missed the Brazilian game," he said through a translator. "I would have waited for the French players outside, but the security let me in. And now I have an autograph from Pogba!"

As it turns out, he didn't miss a great deal, anyway, because Brazil was held 0-0 by Mexico.

MANAUS, Brazil — The controversial penalty that ruined Croatia’s chances of scoring an upset win in the World Cup’s opening match is now in the past, and Cameroon is in the immediate future.

The teams will meet Wednesday at the Arena da Amazonia in the Brazilian rainforest, and the team that can better cope with the hot and humid conditions will likely to be the one to leave town with three points — something both countries could really use after opening losses.

Both squads head into the game with injury concerns, but Croatia midfielder Luka Modric appears to be on the mend. For Cameroon, striker Samuel Eto’o missed two days of practice, putting him in doubt for a starting spot.

The Croatians lost 3-1 to Brazil on Thursday, but the game turned in the second half when referee Yuichi Nishimura awarded a soft penalty to Brazil when the score was 1-1.

Croatia coach Niko Kovac called it a “shameful” decision, but he soon moved on to thinking about the all-important game against Cameroon.

“What we have showed on the [field] was great,” Kovac said. “What I can see in players’ eyes is their desire to make up for what we have lost in the opener.”

Cameroon lost its opening Group A match 1-0 to Mexico. Another loss for either the Cameroonians or the Croatians is likely to mean an early exit from this year’s tournament.

Cameroon was the first African team to reach the quarter-finals at a World Cup, progressing that far in 1990 after beating defending champion Argentina in the opening match. But they headed to Brazil this year after a player bonus pay dispute, delaying their arrival in the South American country.

Off-field troubles aside, Cameroon coach Volker Finke is fixated on fixing what went wrong against Mexico.

“We will analyse this together because the match against Croatia is very important if we want to stay alive,” said Finke, perhaps even understating how critical a win is with Brazil waiting in the final group match.

Besides worrying about an early exit, both teams will also be wary of playing in the heat of the Amazon.

Italy beat England 2-1 in the first match at the Arena da Amazonia on Saturday, but the coaches from both teams complained about the conditions after the match.

Italy coach Cesare Prandelli even said it was “absurd” that FIFA didn’t call for official timeouts to be used to give players a chance to rest and rehydrate.

The early forecast for Wednesday calls for more of the same, with a high of about 30^oC expected.

FIFA uses the “Wet Bulb Globe Temperature” to determine when official breaks should be added, and says the WGBT must be above 32^oC for cooling breaks to be considered.

Unless it gets even hotter by the time the match rolls around, players on both sides can expect another tough match in the jungle.

CURITIBA, Brazil — Spain’s players dismissed notions that a 5-1 loss to the Netherlands spelled the end of an era for the world champions, although coach Vicente del Bosque said it might be time to shake up the line-up for a crucial match against Chile.

“I think the majority of people have confidence in us. We accept criticism, but it’s crazy to talk about the end of an era,” defender Sergio Ramos said Saturday, a day after Spain endured its worst competitive defeat in 64 years.

“Excuses are for losers and Spain has a winning mentality, and that will never change.”

Spain’s bid to repeat as world champion could end if it loses Wednesday’s match against Chile at the Maracana. Chile beat Australia 3-1 in the other Group B match on Friday.

Del Bosque defended his decision to stick with some of the squad’s older players, saying players like Xavi Hernandez, Iker Casillas and Xabi Alonso were the backbone of a team that has provided so much of its success, including qualifying for Brazil.

“I sense these players are not too old, but I say that with some hesitation,” Del Bosque said. “I believe they have the maturity and the skill to take on this challenge. Those that are over 30 are more responsible because of everything they have won in their careers.

“One problem is that we have been so used to having everything go our way. In the face of tough matches we should be prepared to face adversity.”

Spain has gone on an unprecedented run since winning Euro 2008, but Del Bosque has done little tinkering with the core of that same team six years later. Spain has a generous amount of talented players that could likely slide right in like Javi Martinez, Koke and Cesc Fabregas.

And they may get their chance against Chile.

“There could be changes, but now is not the moment to talk about it. I don’t want to rush things and make a wrong decision,” said Del Bosque, who expected Chile to bring a similar style as the Dutch with high pressure up the field. “And if there are changes, it’s not meant to be treated as a message to anyone.”

Del Bosque did not speculate over whether he would stick with striker Diego Costa or return to using Fabregas as a “false striker” that has been so successful.

Casillas made several errors to allow easy goals, but Del Bosque did not sound inclined Saturday to drop his captain.

“When Iker got into the dressing room he made sure to address everybody despite the solemn silence, he apologised for his play and began the recovery process that we needed, he acted like a captain,” Del Bosque said before Saturday’s training, when he had a long solitary chat with Casillas on the sidelines. Xavi later joined in as Spain appeared to take stock of its situation, and the fallout from the historic defeat in which it conceded more goals in one game than it did in its last two major tournaments combined.

Spain was in this situation four years ago in South Africa when it opened with a 1-0 loss to Switzerland. Sixteen players are back from that team, and the next test will be whether they can recover from such a beating.

Ramos said nerves were not an issue.

“We’ve gone through difficult moments before,” the Real Madrid centre back said, “but we have to keep away from feeling any nerves and focus on staying motivated.”

BELO HORIZONTE, Brazil — Belgium returns to its first World Cup in 12 years brimming with confidence and determination before the Group H opener against Algeria.

Belgium’s best cluster of players in a generation is in fierce competition for a starting place Tuesday at Estadio Mineirao. It’s so fierce that a couple of players have picked up knocks in aggressive training sessions.

Coach Marc Wilmots hopes the competitiveness will produce a strong fighting spirit against the Algerians, who have been playing with more flair in recent years. In some respects, Wilmots doesn’t know what tactics to expect from the African team.

“I can’t really look into the cards of the Algerians,” Wilmots said. “They have been playing a 4-3-3. They can play a 4-4-2. We can prepare for 3,000 different options — the only thing we can do is be ready.”

Belgium is widely considered the favourite in Group H, which also includes Russia and South Korea, even without the presence of preferred lone striker Christian Benteke, who missed out on Brazil because of injury. Belgium boasts a crop of talent playing for top clubs teams in Spain and England, including goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, midfielder Eden Hazard and captain Vincent Kompany.

But Algeria comes to this tournament hoping to surpass the achievement of the 1982 World Cup team, which beat European champion West Germany in a group game. Even though it didn’t get past the group stage, it’s still considered to be the north African country’s best team.

Algeria coach Vahid Halilhodzic acknowledges that Belgium is considered the favourite to win, particularly as two-thirds of his squad is playing in a World Cup for the first time.

“We will be playing against a very good Belgian team that remains for me the favourite, but in football everything is possible,” he said. “We have worked hard for an upset here in Brazil. We have a lot of respect for the Belgians, but we have assets to exploit.”

One of those assets is star player Sofiane Feghouli, who was born in France to Algerian parents. His fine first touch and deft passing ability in central midfield makes him Algeria’s biggest threat. The country is lucky to have the 24-year-old Feghouli after France tried to lure him to its national team. Algeria’s other attacking options include Sporting Lisbon striker Islam Slimani.

The 1982 World Cup still hangs heavily over Algerians. After the country upset West Germany, Algeria was eventually eliminated after a seemingly contrived result between Austria and Germany in their last group match put both of the European teams through to the next round.

It’s the bitterness still felt by Algerians over that tournament that drives the current group of players.

“If we want to stage an upset Tuesday, we must be effective and play with heart,” Feghouli said. “The World Cup is a tournament that motivates each player, who knows he has a duty in front of 40 million Algerians that love Algeria, so we just need to get down to work.”

CURITUIBA, Brazil — Iran and Nigeria have something in common ahead of their World Cup clash in Curituiba on Monday.

When they meet at the Arena da Baixada, both teams will be bidding to win their first match in the World Cup finals since France 1998. With Argentina the clear favourite in Group F, Iran and Nigeria are expected to compete with tournament newcomer Bosnia-Herzegovina for second spot.

Though Nigeria is often considered a powerhouse of African football, the Super Eagles have not won a game at the World Cup finals since defeating Bulgaria in a group match 16 years ago. Since then, Nigeria has endured two fairly dismal World Cup campaigns, including in South Africa in 2010, notching up a grand total of two points.

That’s not good enough for a team many have touted as the most likely to become Africa’s first-ever World Cup winner. After all, Nigeria has pedigree on the global stage, having defeated Argentina to win the Olympic gold medal in Atlanta in 1996.

The current African champion has got back on track over the past couple of years under coach Stephen Keshi, who played for Nigeria in the 1994 World Cup and has helped it recover some of the flair and power that marked his country’s football in the 1990s.

Keshi appears unconcerned that his team failed to win any of its three pre-tournament friendlies.

“My concern is how I’m going to bring my players to understand the style of play, to bring them back into the rhythm that we are used to, because it’s a long time we were apart,” Keshi said.

Keshi has a number of hugely experienced players at his disposal, many of whom play for some of Europe’s top clubs. Much could hinge on the form and fitness of Fenerbahce striker Emmanuel Emenike, who has been prolific for Nigeria since his debut in 2011.

Behind Emenike, John Obi Mikel has license to play more creatively than he does for his club side Chelsea, where he’s often a shield in front of the defense. And in goal, Keshi can call upon Lille’s Vincent Enyeama, one of the most experienced goalkeepers in the tournament.

Iran’s last victory at the World Cup was against the United States in one of the great geopolitical clashes. Its one appearance in the finals since, in Germany 2006, yielded just a solitary point.

Despite haphazard preparations that involved a dearth of friendlies and financial constraints, Iran will be no pushover. With Carlos Queiroz, a former coach of Real Madrid and Portugal, at the helm, Nigeria will find Iran difficult to break down.

To bolster the attack, Queiroz has convinced Reza Ghoochannejhad and Ashkan Dejagah to represent the country of their birth. Both played key roles in Iran’s late charge to clinch top spot in an Asian qualifying group that included regional powerhouse South Korea.

Ghoochannejhad, often known as “Gucci”, is a speedy forward who has been prolific for Iran, scoring 10 goals in 14 appearances since Queiroz convinced him in 2012 to opt for “Team Melli” rather than the Netherlands, whom he had represented at youth level. And Dejagah has similarly impressed since he opted for Iran instead of Germany.

Queiroz’s team will be led by Javad Nekounam in what is probably going to be his final World.

SALVADOR –– Germany’s World Cup campaign begins with a tough encounter against Portugal on Monday, though they arrive in Brazil with confidence having won their last three encounters, not to mention every opening match of the tournament since 1990.

A standout first round game, the Group G clash at Salvador’s Forte Nova arena will see Germany’s attractive mix of expert defence and sweeping attacks, led by the likes of Mesut Ozil and Thomas Mueller, come up against a Portugal side containing goal machine Cristiano Ronaldo.

Portugal’s talismanic forward raised a collective sigh of relief in his home country earlier this week when he returned to the side after a troublesome knee injury to shine in a 5-1 friendly victory over Ireland.

A thumbs up to journalists on Thursday confirmed he is fit.

Germany, semifinalists in South Africa four years ago and favourites to top the group which also includes the United States and Ghana, have had fitness boosts too.

Manuel Neuer, Germany’s number one goalkeeper for four years, will start after recovering from a shoulder injury sustained last month, while Phillip Lahm has overcome an ankle injury and will feature in a holding midfield role rather than his traditional right back slot.

Bidding to end an 18-year title drought Germany coach Joachim Loew has been slow to offer many other clues as to how his side will line up, but right back Jerome Boateng is expected to play alongside Mats Hummels and Per Mertesacker, with Erik Durm and Benedikt Hoewedes battling for the left back spot.

Lahm’s presence alongside Sami Khedira in midfield will allow Germany’s exciting attack force of Toni Kroos, Ozil and Lukas Podolski to join ranks with Mueller — top scorer at the 2010 World Cup — to keep Portugal’s defence busy.

With the heat and humidity a concern, Loew will likely turn to an abundance of talent on his bench including Bastian Schweinsteiger and Mario Goetze early in the second half.

Portugal coach Paulo Bento has a fit squad after defender Pepe and midfielder Raul Meireles also shook off niggles. Rui Patricio will start in goal, with the fiery Pepe and Bruno Alves marshalling energetic fullbacks Joao Pereira and Fabio Coentrao.

Joao Moutinho will provide the craft in a three-man midfield that will look to use Ronaldo’s pace and power at every opportunity. Hugo Almeida and Silvestre Varela will join Ronaldo in attack.

With the Netherlands thumping Spain 5-1 at the Forte Nova arena on Friday, goals may well rain down once more in Salvador on Monday, with Germany having scored at least four times in four of their last six opening World Cup matches.

However, Portugal’s record of just one goal conceded in the group stage of the last two tournaments may prove a spoiler. 

NATAL, Brazil — Mexico is ready to take on five-time champions and tournament hosts Brazil after overcoming two controversially disallowed “goals” to beat Cameroon in its World Cup opener, coach Miguel Herrera said on Friday.

Herrera, who took over last year after a succession of coaches departed, said the 1-0 victory after two Giovani dos Santos efforts were ruled out shows the mental fortitude needed to make a deep run at the finals.

“The team overcame the disallowed goals,” Herrera said. “The team showed they were mentally strong.”

“The players were concentrating and if we maintain it on the pitch and continue to play football like this we can overcome anything.”

In pouring rain and cheered on by a stadium full of their supporters, Mexico broke through after 61 minutes when Oribe Peralta rifled home a rebound from man-of-the match Dos Santos to secure the victory.

Mexico next faces Brazil in Fortaleza on Tuesday in its second Group A match while Cameroon take on Croatia a day later in the jungle city of Manaus.

Cameroon’s German coach Volker Finke declined to use the waterlogged pitch and driving rain as an excuse for the loss, saying his side created enough chances at the Dunas arena to get a result.

“The conditions are the same for both teams so we can’t complain about the weather,” Finke said. “The pitch itself wasn’t too bad. It’s a pity we didn’t win but both teams had balanced chances.”

Mexico’s Herrera also admitted he was nervous about whether Peralta’s strike would stand but said he would not worry about the refereeing going into the next match.

Brazil beat Croatia 3-1 in the opening game in part due to a contentious penalty awarded to the tournament hosts.

“No we are not thinking of the referee,” Herrera said. “We are thinking of what we have to do. People make mistakes.

“The first two goals were very good goals. I was hoping we could have a goal. When we scored the first thing I was looking for was the linesman’s flag.”

MADRID — Spain mourned the national football team’s stunning loss to Netherlands in their World Cup opener on Friday with words such as “humiliation” and “nightmare” splashed across the front pages of newspapers on Saturday.

Spain, one of the favourites to win the World Cup and defend their 2010 title, succumbed to a rampant Netherlands team in its heaviest World Cup defeat in over 60 years with a 5-1 demolition.

“Worse than the worst possible nightmare for a team that had never conceded more than one goal in a European or World Championship since 2008,” Spain’s leading newspaper El Pais said. 

A complete cataclysm.”
Madrid, which normally greets victories with blasting car horns and singing along the streets, had gone silent.

“Ladies and gentleman, we’ve lost the magic touch,” sports newspaper AS said.

Spain’s defeat in Salvador was also only their fourth competitive loss under coach Vicente del Bosque since he took over in 2008 and has triggered speculation of the team’s possible premature return to home.

“Spain started the defence of its title without any defence at all and ended up humiliated by Netherlands,” sports newspaper Marca said.

Some newspapers took consolation from the fact that Spain also lost their opening game at the 2010 World Cup to Switzerland but eventually went through as group winners.

Spain play Chile in their next Group B match on Wednesday.