London Olympics 2012: Preview to Brazil's football team

Without a doubt Brazil are strong favorites to win gold at London Olympics competition. Previous winners Argentina failed to make the cut as they couldn’t come out on top in the qualifiers, despite winning their final game against Colombia with a score line of two to nothing. They required Brazil to lose by 5 goals or more against Uruguay to stand any chance of qualifying for the Olympics, and that was not what Brazil Coach Mano Menezes had in mind as they thrashed their neighbors with an intimidating scoreline of 6-0 to qualify for London 2012.

Brazil could intimidate their opponents with superstars like Hulk, Neymar and Thiago Silva in their line-up. They are in Group C along with Egypt, Belarus and New Zealand and are expected to move progress to the next round with considerable ease. The18-man squad travelling to London has been confirmed by head coach Menezes after short shortlisting 35 players from the 52 available and breaking it down further into 18 players with 3 replacements.

The 18 man squad

Coach : Mano Menezes

Goalkeepers: Rafael Cabral (Santos), Neto (Fiorentina)

Defenders: Marcelo (Real Madrid), Rafael (Manchester United), Danilo (Porto), Alex Sandro (Porto), Thiago Silva (AC Milan), Juan (Inter Milan), Bruno Uvini (Sao Paulo)

Midfielders: Romulo (Vasco da Gama), Ganso (Santos), Oscar (Internacional), Sandro (Tottenham Hotspur), Lucas (Sao Paulo)

Forwards: Neymar (Santos), Alexandre Pato (AC Milan), Leandro Damiao (Internacional), Hulk (Porto).

Replacements: Marquinhos (Corinthians), Giuliano (Dniepr/UKR), Cassemiro (Sao Paulo), Gabriel (AC Milan/ITA)

A brief recap and what to expect at the games

Brazil’s failure to win gold will come as a surprise to many, as they have featured 11 times in the Olympics and have won only silver in 1984 and 1988 and bronze in 1996 and 2008. Considering that Brazil have clinched the World Cup a record five times, it is hard to believe that an Olympic gold medal has eluded them for so long. But the current squad has undergone a period of transition, and this Brazil team definitely has the caliber and potential to reach greater heights than their previous squads. Along with Team GB, Spain and Uruguay they are the pre-tournament favorites and it could change en route to Wembley where the finals will be held.

Key Player

Neymar

Pele usually begins his pressers by saying that he has scored more goals than everybody, and that Neymar is better than Messi. There is no need for introduction about this young talent; he exemplifies what poetry in motion is all about. Every European club will be watching him closely and observe how he fares in a surrounding different from Santos, and attempt to lap him up in a big money move. He is fully expected to lead the lineup along with Hulk and injury prone Pato. With players like Lucas Moura, Ganso and Oscar, Neymar along with Hulk are expected to shine in front of goal. He has the potential to single handedly ensure that Brazil wins their first gold in men’s football.