Opinion – Tostão: The victories are always very close to the defeats

Flamengo, in the resounding victories, several by rout, used strategies similar or equal to the defeat by 3-0 to Athletico and other bad results. Against the team from Paraná, Flamengo had seven clear chances to score. In every match in which they won, drawn or lost, the team left many spaces in defense. Barcelona de Guayaquil lost countless goals in the two defeats to Flamengo.

Flamengo’s way of acting, pressing in attack and leaving many spaces in defense, is a calculated risk, which could be reduced if the team improved the position of defenders when attacking and recovered the ball quickly, where they lost it, as did at the time of Jorge Jesus. However, even big teams, which do not have this deficiency, from time to time, suffer routs. It’s the risk.

In soccer, a team often wins several games in a row and suddenly loses several games, even without changing the players and the behavior of the coaches. Wins are usually very close to defeats.

Statistics help in understanding the game, but sometimes they hinder, deceive. Finishing a lot can be a virtue or a deficiency, as it can reduce the exchange of passes and infiltrations to score. Much more important than getting a lot of submissions is creating scoring chances.

Flamengo, against Atlético, was another team. He played more cautiously and scored further back to counterattack. Atlético did not manage to create goal opportunities nor did it allow Flamengo’s counterattacks. It was a bad game, tumultuous, as is common in classics in Brazil. We cannot settle for this situation and we must demand better shows.

The only great moment of the match was Flamengo’s goal. Arão, with a lot of technique, gave the precise, long pass for forward Isla to cross. Bruno Henrique, as always, climbed very high, in the clouds. He headed the smart Michael to score.

`Palmeiras, in the victory over Grêmio, showed, once again, that it is a team that likes to change the lineup and the way of playing according to the opponent and the characteristics of the selected players. I see this as a quality. There are many ways to play well and win, as long as the changes are made at the right time. Abel Ferreira and Cuca are two restless coaches, who know and like to change the team and the strategy. They are not geniuses in victories or stupid in defeats. They are very good trainers.

splendor and sunset

Last week, Garrincha would be 88 years old. I saw, on the field, on television, its splendor and, closer, its sunset, in the 1966 World Cup. I was present. In a national team training game, before the World Cup, against a Swedish second division team, I was on the bench, one meter from the sideline. Garrincha, close by, dribbled the marker so much that I, the other reserves, and the closest crowd laughed. Because of this show, Garrincha was confirmed in the World Cup, without conditions, as he dribbled, but did not leave his place. He scored a free kick at the Worlds, against Bulgaria.

Craziness

I started reading “A Virtude da Loucura”, by Editora Grande Area, about coach Marcelo Bielsa, written by English journalist Tim Rich. “Loco Bielsa” is one of the important characters in football, as he represents the inventiveness, weirdness and success of the losers.