Re: True, and which are way off? It has been 84 years since the first edition of this illustrious tournament took place in Uruguay. Nearly a century is, obviously, more than enough time for people to draw general conclusions about the teams they love and the ones they loathe - and then pass them on to the next generation. More often than not, those generalizations stick. There are common stereotypes associated with every team trotted out time and again by (lazy) people unwilling to look at the current state of a respective side, instead relying on often misguided cliches. Here are five of the most popular (read: awful) stereotypes that seem to arise every time one of these teams makes an appearance in a major tournament. Brazil Conventional wisdom says... Attacking flair in abundance. Joga bonito in its purest form. Back-heel passes, flicks and no look through balls by everyone from the most creative attacker to the most conservative defender. But in truth... Only star forward Neymar exhibits these qualities, which hasnt helped to dispel the notion that the entire team plays free-flowing football, because most people who cling to the cliche have only seen the Barcelona man in extended action. Its easy to assume that because he does it, and he is the headliner of the team, they must all do it. You know what they say when you assume things... Solid - yet unspectacular - in midfield and boasting arguably the best center-back in the world, Brazil are capable of grinding out matches with anyone. There are remnants of samba football that will make an appearance every now and again, but if Brazil hoist the World Cup on July 13, it wont be because they danced their way through the competition. Italy Conventional wisdom says... Park. That. Bus. Stifling catenaccio that relies on an assembly line of world class defenders to suck the fun out of the game and ensure that Italy needs to score just once to win any given match. But in truth... Cesare Prandelli thoroughly stomped on this concept by rebuilding the squad and putting an emphasis on technically-gifted players - particularly in the midfield - like Andrea Pirlo and Marco Verratti. This, in turn, allows Italy to keep the ball and dictate tempo as opposed to dropping ten men onto the edge of their own penalty area. In truth, the Italian defense as currently constructed would leave Gaetano Scirea, Franco Baresi and Paolo Maldini in tears. Germany Conventional wisdom says... Mechanical. Efficient. Winners. What they lack in individual brilliance, they more than compensate for with collective strength, winning competitions on the efforts of their entire squad as other teams toil away trying to rely on a solitary star. But in truth... From purely a skill standpoint, one of the most talented rosters in the world. Germanys stable of young, exciting talent is arguably the very best on the planet. Mesut Ozil, Mario Gotze, Marco Reus et al are anything but mechanical. About that whole winning thing, though. Netherlands Conventional wisdom says... Total Football. A 4-3-3 formation featuring skillful players at almost every spot in the lineup, which allows for the seamless interchanging of positions. Prone to dissension, you never know what to expect from the perennial underachievers. But in truth... This one remains to be seen. Manager Louis van Gaal seems intent on playing a 3-5-2 in Brazil, a change in philosophy born mainly out of necessity following the injury to influential midfielder Kevin Strootman. Regardless of the formation or style, the only cliche that really matters is that of the Oranje as a team unable to win the big one. Does that change in 2014? England Conventional wisdom says... Lacking bona fide talent, the Three Lions will always show plenty of hunger and heart, outworking their opponents more often than not. While their physical style of play will throw off some lesser teams, lumping the ball up to a lone striker will not yield results against quality opposition. If they go to penalties, you can already pencil in the final result. But in truth... The likes of Steven Gerrard and Wayne Rooney still give you the all-out effort that has come to define the team, but with young talent like Raheem Sterling and Ross Barkley en route to becoming the undisputed focal points of the squad, things are taking a turn for the better.
Posted on: Tue, 17 Jun 2014 14:02:15 +0000
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