The results of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar will provide an explanation: Is UEFA's "trade protectionism" through UEFA League matches good or bad for European teams?
A basic fact: Brazil is the favourite to win this World Cup, at least one of the favourites, and from the point of view of the preparations, no European team dares to say that it has done better than Brazil. European teams have been occupied by the UEFA League for a long time, and few teams can warm up with Brazil, and now no one can assert whether the lack of contact and combat experience is more beneficial to South American teams (including Argentina and Uruguay) or European teams.
Brazilian coach Tite, who was a European-style 4231 believer ahead of the 2018 World Cup, has an almost dogmatic emphasis on technical and tactical discipline and formation, with a particularly conservative use of young players. But the failure of the 2018 World Cup, and the success of Portugal Jesus in coaching Flamengo in 2019 (European coaches actively adapting to the success stories of Brazilian football, rather than forcing Brazilian players to accept the European system), seem to have given Tite a clue. Brazil is well prepared for the 2022 World Cup, which is widely recognized by the Brazilian media.
The record of the World Preliminary Round and the performance of the 2 Copa America do not need to be repeated here, Tite has achieved a major achievement in the new national team cycle that has allowed players such as Marchinhos, Richarisson, Rafinha and Paqueta to grow and pick up the beams. Now Neymar is a veteran, Richarisson, Rafinha and Jesus, who missed the training camp, are all 25 years old, and behind them are the younger Vinicius and Rodrigo, who have already won the Champions League trophy at Real Madrid.
The second point is that Tite has completely stepped out of the technical and tactical dogma of the past. Now Brazil's 433 is a very flexible formation, and for the game against Tunisia, Brazil is a lot of times more like playing 361 or 325. Tite makes good use of the excellent technical advantages of Brazilian players, Brazil can maximize the use of the width of the field to launch an attack, especially the Brazilian defender can accurately pass the striker, which makes the opponent collectively grab the Brazilian return pass every time, but may immediately become the opportunity for Brazil to strike a fatal blow, the upper grab is to find death, not to grab is to wait for death, Brazil can quickly form a local numerical advantage on the left and right sides (especially the left side of Neymar) to launch a surprise attack.
Some Brazilian journalists don't like Manchester United's Fred, they prefer the 3-0 style of play against Ghana, only Casemiro is a pure midfielder, and he is surrounded by and ahead of Paqueta, Neymar, Vinicius, Richarisson and Rafinha. That's certainly the balance Tite needs to look for, and Brazil isn't the only Fred choice in this position, Fabinho and Bruno Guimarães both go to the World Cup without incident. When it comes to making the most of the width of the pitch to attack, Brazil can indeed play like it did against Ghana. And, when using 2 midfielders, if Casenalo is flanked by a player like Guimarães, he can also provide a back plug in the attack.
Historically, Brazilian football has never lacked particularly good assists for full-backs, from Nilton Santos in 1958 and 1962, to Carlos Alberto in 1970, to Jurzienho in 1994 (and Leonardo, who was sent off in the quarter-finals), and Roberto Carlos and Cafu in 2002. Problems became prominent in the 2018 World Cup, with a 2-1 loss to Belgium, with Marcelo on the left and Fagner on the right not being defensive at all. The objective fact is that Brazil no longer has magical wings, what should Tite do?
Tite understands the issue and seems to go far beyond "who plays full-back". He sees more of the defender's assist tactics in the traditional Brazilian 4-back formation, which is becoming more and more difficult to play in today's world football: attacking, the ball is easy to block, and it is easy to leave empty space behind him. Therefore, the current Brazilian full-backs do not always attack from the side, but often go to the middle, becoming the connection point between the center-back, the back and the forward. Brazil's attack is still launched from the wing, but it is no longer the full-back who bursts into the front, but the striker is properly transported in the empty space of the front.
Tite said that he studied coaches such as Pep Guardiola, Klopp and so on, which is not false at all. In Brazil's nominal 433 formation, Neymar is sometimes a left midfielder, sometimes a left striker, but in reality he has only one position: a winger. It's typical Pep Guardiola football, and Neymar understands it very well and fits him right now – less explosive than before, but more experienced and wise. He said something interesting after the game against Ghana: "As long as I'm 100% in form, it's going to be difficult for whoever it is. ”
Many European teams are listless and do not give their all in the Europa League, the players are under pressure from the club and the coach is afraid of the player's injury. There are many videos and pictures that can prove the current level of intentions of Brazilian players, who understand the significance and value of winning the 6th crown for Brazil. There are pictures showing that when Tite talks about tactics, the players are huddled together, listening intently like schoolchildren. There is also video showing players on the bench celebrating Brazil's 1-0 goal against Tunisia, and Tite is already playing hot to remind them to remember the tactical essentials.
Every time Brazil wins a World Cup, it often experiences something that is not favorable. Brazil is actually very well prepared for this World Cup, and the changes are great, but there are always many public opinion in many countries that the "trade protectionism" of the European League in recent years has made Brazil (and Argentina, Uruguay) lack experience in playing against European teams. But if opponents take a hard look at Brazil's current offensive capabilities and technical and tactical prowess, would these commentators ask themselves a fundamental question: Who is better for a lack of experience in the confrontation?