Last June 30, Brazil did more than pull the rug
underneath Spain’s feet. The team set records for itself, and destroyed some of
Spain’s own.
The 2013 Confederations Cup is Brazil’s third since
2005, and its fourth in the entire history of the competition. This makes Brazil the team with the most number of Confederations
Cups. Also, this is the 57th consecutive home match since 1975 that
the Canarinho have won—an impressive
feat.
On La Roja’s part,
this is their first competitive match defeat in three years. Spain had been on
a roll since first battling Switzerland in the 2010 World Cup, and has never
been defeated by 3 goals since April 1985. This makes Sunday’s loss humiliating
for the Spaniards—to say the least.
La Roja was unable to stop either Fred or Neymar from giving
their best shot, despite employing their usual tactic of ganging up on opposing
scorers. All of Brazil’s goals were made during the first and last minutes of
the match’s halves—which are critical times for scoring. Additionally, the
red-and-yellow team paid dearly for fouls, one of which ejected Gerard Pique at
the 68th minute for tripping Neymar.
With this win, Neymar holds the Golden Ball, an
award given to the tournament’s top player. The 21-year-old striker and his
team, armed with a sense of confidence that only comes with defeating a
football giant like Spain, now has their eyes on another prize: the 2014 World
Cup.
Will
Brazil replicate their 2013 Confederations Cup finals performance for the World
Cup? Sound off in the comments section below.
