For a section of the Brazilian media here Tite’s novel policy of rotating the Seleção captaincy from game to game, in an effort to promote collective leadership, raises the obvious question: who gets the gig in the final and lifts the World Cup trophy?
At the last tournament in Brazil the then manager, Luiz Felipe Scolari, had talked about “seven steps to heaven”. His team, notoriously, would descend into hell after step six – the 7-1 humbling against Germany, which has hung over them ever since.
The exorcism will be possible only if Brazil can go all the way in Russia and there is no doubt that failure is not exactly on the press agenda at present. A nation does not expect, it assumes and, given the way Tite has re-energised the set-up, who can blame them?
The pressure is excruciating and, when Tite faced the media on the eve of Sunday’s Group E opener against Switzerland, it seemed revealing that he was asked whether he was on any medication to help him sleep. His response – part humour, part conviction – reflected his comfort and it extends to the trappings of Brazil’s tag of favourites. They are here to win it and Tite is not afraid to say so.
“As somebody who has been through eight or nine surgeries, I take no drugs,” he said. “I try to manage my ghosts, my angst, my human side. Yes, there is this expectation. I just try to focus on what matters.
“The work we have done gives us the expectation but also a lot of inner peace. We have been building up to this for some time. Winning is a dream and my focus is totally geared to that. It feels like the world is looking at us but we want to be natural on the pitch, like we have been in all the games.”
Tite has given the captaincy to Marcelo for the Switzerland tie and, with Dani Alves out injured, it appears that he will continue to pass the armband around. He had previously indicated that Alves, who has captained the team the most during his tenure, would assume the responsibility in Russia. Each member of Tite’s likely XI against Switzerland has captained the team, even the 21-year-old striker Gabriel Jesus.
Marcelo, one of only six survivors from the last World Cup, radiated confidence, particularly when asked about the 7-1. “There is no longer any trauma,” Marcelo said. “If there was, I wouldn’t be playing any more. I would have retired. Of course, I wish it were different but there is no trauma. I always look for new goals and this World Cup is another challenge.
“The captaincy is something that I like. When you are a kid playing on the beach, you dream of representing the national team and now I have the opportunity to be captain at a World Cup. Money cannot buy this feeling. In the group everybody contributes but I am 30 and, of course, you gain experience.”
In the numbers game that can colour match previews Tite can point to having suffered defeat only once in his 21 matches in charge – against Argentina in a friendly. There have been 17 wins. But there is another detail that seems to have slipped under the radar.
It comes from the Switzerland side and it is the one that shows them in sixth position in the Fifa world rankings, looking down on France and Spain, among others. How the world governing body gets to its master-list is often questioned and mocked but do not tell the Swiss they do not deserve their status. “We have worked hard to have this ranking,” Stephan Lichtsteiner, the captain, said. Before the Brazil game it underpins the quiet confidence that has built around their camp.
Vladimir Petkovic’s team are set up to pass and pass – everything goes through the midfield fulcrum Granit Xhaka – and there was the statistic from Euro 2016, when Switzerland reached the last 16, that showed they had enjoyed more possession than their opponents in every game, even against France in the final group tie, which finished 0-0.
Switzerland have the utmost respect for Brazil and it was a snappy soundbite when Lichtsteiner said that Neymar, whom Tite revealed was not yet 100% fit after ankle and metatarsal damage, was “practically impossible to neutralise completely over 90 minutes”.
The right-back is set for a direct confrontation with Brazil’s brightest star. “He is probably the best and most complete player in that position in the world,” Lichtsteiner added. But he returned with a measure of swiftness to Switzerland’s pre-match message – they are hellbent on showcasing their own game.
“It’s about us imposing ourselves and using our full-backs to get forward,” Lichtsteiner said. “We have to be cohesive as a team and close the gaps when we confront players like Neymar.”
Petkovic mentioned how his team’s mentality had grown during his four years in charge. They have lost only once in their previous 22 matches, winning 16 of them. “I always focus on our way of playing,” he said. “We will try to dominate and win. We are not here to make a lovely match against Brazil but to win it.”
