Whew!! They survived the James Rodriguez led Colombians scare after quite a solid display by their team. The supporters of the host nation lit up as they now felt they could go all the way to claim football’s prestigious trophy; The World Cup. Although they had concerns about the absence of their captain and arguably the best defender in the world; Thiago Silva due to a match suspension he got after acquiring a yellow card in that match, but they still had a glimmer of hope until that was shattered by the news of the broken vertebra injury Colombia’s Juan Camilo Zúñiga accidentally inflicted on their golden boy Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior ruling him out of the rest of the tournament.
Wherever the Germans were or are at this moment they’ll be so delighted because they now have 1 leg in the final as two integral members of the Brazilian set up would be out of their way as they battle the samba boys tomorrow. Coach Joachim Löw especially should capitalise on a very shaky Brazilian defence as there is a loop hole now in the center left by Thiago Silva which exposes David Luiz who whilst showing some positive character on the attack in the Colombia game can still be unconvincing defensively.
The man expected to fit in for 30 year old Bayern Munich defender, Dante who has certain limitations. Questions must be asked as to why Luiz Felipe Scolari didn’t select Marquinhos in the Squad roster as he could have been integrated with little cameos as the tournament progressed .
Now putting my Brazilian thinking cap on, with creative players like Mesut Özil, Toni Kroos, Mario Götze and the ever hardworking Thomas Muller popping up it’s going to be one hell of a job for David Luiz and Dante. So I think the solution should come in the form of the workaholic Luiz Gustavo as he comes back from suspension. He would be dropping back to ease the pressure off the two center backs who might struggle under pressure.
The main question on everybody’s lips is can Brazil do without Neymar in attack? That is another key piece and a determinant of tomorrow’s outcome. In my opinion, they should be able to because if you look at the attack force of Brazil it possesses a calibre of energetic, young and hungry players who have been dying to step into the spotlight that has been occupied by the nation’s darling; Neymar. From the workaholic Oscar to the versatile Willian, these two can inject a sense of unpredictability and cause some problems for the German defenders whilst retaining the defensive solidity honed by Jose Mourinho at Chelsea. However, with Captain Philipp Lahm coming back to his original position at right back, Mats Hummels and Jérôme Boateng in the center of the park and Benedikt Höwedes ng> holding down the left it would be a tough task for the Brazilian duo.
They say if you believe you can achieve but if you ask me the Brazilians are in trouble. That’s how Ore Peters sees it. What do you think? Drop your comments here or tweet at me @oreoluwapeters . Catch you next week