Brazil on The Top of The World!

Brazil striker Fred celebrates his first goal against Spain during the
FIFA 2013 Confederations Cup at the Maracana on Sunday, June 30.
Brazil defeated European and World Champions Spain 3-0.

Brazil won the Confederations Cup after dominating Spain 3-0 at the Maracana Stadium, Rio De Janeiro, on Sunday, June 30.

What was the first opposition between the two countries since 1999 (a friendly game that ended 0-0), turned out to be a spectacular showcase of football by the country that lives, breathes, and dies for the game.

In a brand new Maracana stadium, the Brazilian players did not wait long to get in the game. Their solid pressure forced Spain to lose the ball quickly and  give away a goal after only two minutes of play. Brazilian striker Fred, despite being on the ground, was faster than Casillas, and kicked the ball into the net after a defensive error by Pique, Ramos, and Casillas together.

The crowd, already pretty excited, was now boiling! Brazil had done the hardest part: Scoring a goal to the best team in the world. And the game was far from over.

Spain had to get back in the game and they tried, but never succeeded. Brazil kept pressuring Spanish players who, weirdly, appeared to have forgotten how to play football. They missed touches and passes, and simply could not make more than five passes without losing the ball. On Sunday, Brazil was playing football while Spain looked lost on the field.

Pushed by an awesome crowd, Brazil kept passing the ball around and challenging danger the Spanish defense every time they had the ball. And finally, the inevitable happened. Brazil scored a second goal off the foot of its growing star and new Barcelona player, Neymar. The 19 year-old striker hit a missile under Casillas cross-bar, giving Brazil a 2-0 lead just a few minutes before halftime.

Neymar, elected man of the match, scores the second goal for Brazil
despite a last defensive attempt by Alvaro Arbeloa during the confederations
Cup final at the Maracana on Sunday, June 30. 

Neymar, who scored four goals and had one assist in five games, showed the world that he is one of the best players out there. Barcelona was probably pleased to see that their investment was a good one, his future Spanish teammates simply could not handle him on Sunday. Let's hope he keeps it up for the upcoming season.

In my opinion, there is two ways to beat Spain: Chelsea's way, where you park the bus in front of the goal and play every counter attack at 200 percent, and Brazil's way, where you put a lot of pressure during the entire game (which is no easy feat, but Brazil did an amazing job at it) and by being able to keep the ball and use it wisely when you have it. Brazil managed that with great technical players all over the field. Not a single player had a technical breakdown under Spain's famous defensive pressure. Indeed, in the second half, Spain never battled to get the ball back like they usually do. They waited in the back, praying for an opponent's mistake. It never came.

"We are not robots," Spanish defender Sergio Ramos said after the game. "We were meant to lose a big game at some point."

It's true, they aren't robots, because a robot who have scored the penalty kick awarded to Spain after a foul on substitute Jesus Navas (53'). They are not robots because robots know better than to let Sergio Ramos, probably the worst penalty-taker of the entire Spain squad, take the PK which could have put them back in the game!

A few minutes before that, Fred had scored a third goal for Brazil and his second of the game (47'). Spain conceded two of Brazil's three goals shortly after kick-offs, even though every coach in the world says that the first 15 minutes of a game are the most important ones.

"Brazil were a bit lucky," Spain coach Vicente Del Bosque said. "But I will not make excuses for our loss. Brazil are the deserved winners and we have to congratulate them."

While Del Bosque considers Brazil lucky in the two goals they scored at the beginning of each half, he certainly admits that Brazil was better than his team. The second half was simply a disaster for Spain. Sure, they were unlucky sometimes, but most of the time they faced a great Julio Cesar, decisive on Spain's rare opportunities. Spain lived a nightmare in a Maracana crowded with ecstatic fans. And as a cherry on the top of the humiliation cake, Gerard Pique would receive a straight red card for a terrible challenge after Neymar showed his skills and speed.

Spain defender Gerard Pique fouls Neymar as he goes toward the goal
during the Confederations Cup final at the Maracana on Sunday, June 30.
Pique was sent off for the challenge. 

This game was news to the world of football. On one hand, it tells us that Brazil is slowly but surely growing as a team and a serious contender for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. On the other hand, it gives us the impression that Spain's domination is coming to an end with aging players and a strategy that has been now analyzed by every coach in the world--a strategy that does not allow Spain to change the way they play according to their opponent. Players are so used to playing one and only one way, that they seem incapable to adapt. They sure look like robots after all.