Can Brazil rally around the loss of Neymar and win the World Cup?

I’ve seen Brazil win twice in my life. At four, in 1994, I didn’t really understand what was happening, but my dad looked really happy so I was too. At 12, in 2002, I remember the whole country partying – after an early morning match that I watched on the sofa, wrapped in a Brazil flag for a blanket. At 23, after two disappointing championships, hopes of winning in 2014 were low. In fact, most Brazilians were sceptical up until now, after a frustrating draw against Mexico and a nerve wrecking match against Chile, where the team only scraped through to the quarter finals. This Friday, everyone turned to the television without much hope, expecting James Rodriguez to decimate the Brazil team. Before the start of the Cup, the media over-hyped the possibility of Brazil becoming a six-time world champion. Captain of the team Thiago Silva even posed for a national magazine holding up six fingers - a strong show of confidence. [caption id=“attachment_1605343” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Neymar is out of the World Cup with an injured vertebra. AP[/caption] But once the tournament began, headlines about the ‘seleção’ were critical. Reports of bad performances were constant, and seeing the team struggle weakened any confidence people might have had. Thankfully, this Friday Thiago Silva provided the nation with some much needed relief with a messy goal in the beginning of the first half. David Luiz sealed the deal with a beautiful goal in the second half. Despite Neymar’s subpar performance, the team played well – they got the passes right and worked together. It was their best performance yet. I could feel the sense of relief wash through the nation as the match ended – until Neymar was kneed in the back by Zuñiga in the 87th minute of the second half. He left the pitch crying in a stretcher. The win felt like relief, but everyone was worried about the ‘craque’ (the star). Minutes after the match ended, journalists scrambled to find out what happened to the 22-year-old-star where all our hopes lie. Soon enough the news was out: Neymar has been ruled out of the World Cup due to a broken vertebra. Where before there was party, now there is doubt and anxiousness. The key piece to winning the 2014 World Cup is gone. It must be said that this is the second time Neymar has been injured from a foul as other footballers have gone after him. In the first minutes of Brazil vs Chile, his leg swelled up because of a violent foul – he was limping when he wasn’t running. In a press conference manager Felipe Scolari said: “Neymar, everyone knew he was going to be hunted. It’s been three games where this has been happening and we’ve been pointing it out. But no one thinks it’s true, everyone thinks only the players from Germany are hunted, not Neymar.” The reporters on the television were visibly upset and angry when discussing the events of the match. Brazil suffered through difficult matches, have made it to the semis and now it may all be lost. But some commentators say Brazil can turn this loss around. Journalist Vincent Bevins, Brazilian correspondent for LA Times, tweeted: “In a way, Brazil could turn this around for its own benefit. Now, they either are underdog heroes, or did just fine. Does anyone else think this is pressure off of Brazil’s shoulders? If they lose without Neymar, no one will hate them. Everything to gain.” Bevins might be right in that there will be less pressure on the teams shoulders, but team captain Thiago Silva says this game-changing adversity will result in a stronger unity in the group. “At these times the group shows its strengths,” he said. “Neymar is very important to our group, we depend on him a lot, but this moment can turn into a revolution of ours. This can further unite our group.” Curiously this situation has happened before. In 1962 Pelé got hurt in Brazil’s first match, against Mexico – he was ruled out of the championship right then, and replaced by Amarildo. This is something the Brazilian media has been comparing with the current situation – maybe there is hope. The Brazilian team went on to win the championship for the second time, even without their star. We still don’t know who Scolari will pick to replace Neymar, but could he be the 2014’s Amarildo?