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Egypt 2009: Ghana – Brazil finale!

October 16th, 2009 | By: Gary | 20 Comments »

Kick off time: 1800 GMT
Venue: Cairo International StadiumHungary have just beaten Costa Rica on penalties. Now it’s grand finale time.

The time is nigh and Ghana is in a state of perpetual flux. Ghana plays Brazil for the third time in this comeptition’s history and both teams have an agenda. I’ve done a lot on Ghana during the course of the games, so we’ll do the Selecao instead.

Brazil
They have been called Egypt 2009’s most complete side and it is quite understandable. Brazil have scored 14 goals in 6 games, only superceded by Spain and the team they face later today -Ghana. While others may have scored more, these guys have played a brand of football is not strange to those who know anything about the ‘joga bonito’

Their record in this comepetition is well known (won 4 times and appeared severally) but I want to concentrate on coach Rogerio Laurenco (pictured).

The 37-year-old may not be the most experienced of coaches but he has shown he’s the perfect man for the job. The former defender was a player himself not that long ago and when he hung up his boots in 2001 at just 30 years of age, he went straight to coaching, starting off in the youth divisions of his old playing club, Flamengo.

It’s worth noting that he has the record for the most goals scored by a defender in Flamengo’s history.

Today, part of his job description includes helping Brazil’s national senior team coach, Dunga while also taking charge of the country’s under-aged teams. Lourenco said:

“Of course there is pressure to win. Anyone who coaches in Brazil knows this.”

Brazil’s coach hopes that “facing another attacking team, like Brazil, means that the football will be better to watch” considering the two teams have scored 30 goals between them.

At this tournament the guy has whipped his team into an attacking machine spearheaded by Alex Teixeira and Alan Kardec. The captain, Giulano, also has that hold on his peers that natural captains seem to possess. In the line-up is Douglas Costa – the man who was among the most-feared before the tournament started on September 24.

Yet, he has been largely benched and has played only 3 matches and scored once. Why the coach has done that is beyond me but he’s the gaffer. Here’s how they beat Costa Rica in the semis.

What to expect

Ghana and Brazil have been here before in 1993. In that final in Sydney, Ghana took a 1-0 lead after a quarter of an hour, but Brazil equalized five minutes after the restart and sealed what was their third title with the winning strike two minutes before the end of normal time.

So, Senor Lourenco would be looking to do it again.

His team’s 14 goals have been scored from all sides of the fields by different players, unlike Ghana who have had half of theirs’ by Dominic Adiyiah. That means the Satellites must be wary of anybody in yellow and green.

Out of their sixteen, 11 of Ghana’s goals have come on the other side of halftime, and both Brazil and Ghana have come from behind to win twice, so don’t count out either if they start slowly.

Referee: Frank de Bleeckere, Belgium

This is how Ghana beat Hungary in the semis.

Game on!

Tags: Team News and Rumors, Under 20 World Cup

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Comments | Add your comment

By bassem | October 16th, 2009 at 4:01 pm

From the Netherlands TUNISIA

Congrats to GHANA Sincerly great AFRICA dedacate a song to all Africans around the world MAMA AFRICA by Akon! Realy great this hope to do it in 2010 aswell big hope for Ivory Coast to do this for AFRICA!

Posted from Netherlands

By bassem | October 16th, 2009 at 4:01 pm

OR maby even GHANA!!!!!!!!

Posted from Netherlands

By bassem | October 16th, 2009 at 4:02 pm

Great you guys absolutely deserved!!!!!!!!!! Netherlands TUNISIA calling to GHANA World CHAMPION 1st AFRICAN NATION and hopefully not the last!!!!

Posted from Netherlands

By Shane | October 16th, 2009 at 4:03 pm

Ghana are the champions! Dreadful game to be honest but a riveting penalty shoot out.

Posted from United States

By bassem | October 16th, 2009 at 4:09 pm

Shane don’t give rats ass WORLD CHAMPION GHANA MAMA AFRICA!!!!!!!!

Posted from Netherlands

By bassem | October 16th, 2009 at 4:10 pm

GARY U 2 FROM THE NETHERLANDS TUNISIA CALLING CONGRATS WORLD CHAMPION 1ST AFRICAN NATION!!!! I Love this, through out the game i grew 30 years older what a game!!!

Posted from Netherlands

By sam by name but friends call me Bogox | October 16th, 2009 at 4:14 pm

is so wonderfull braz don’t even believe what then see goal goals
ghana coach hopes that ghana carryb the cup after every thing them later take it that is thank God of socce for that !!

By sscouser | October 16th, 2009 at 4:25 pm

Congrats Ghana. I feel sorry for Costa Rica. On Wednesday they almost qualified (just seconds away) for the 2010 World Cup and then today the Under 20 lost through penalty shoot-outs.

Posted from United States

By sscouser | October 16th, 2009 at 4:27 pm

FIFA U-17 WC: Nigeria Ready or Not, Here We Come
http://malawi.worldcupblog.org/team-news/fifa-u-17-wc-nigeria-ready-or-not-here-we-come.html

Posted from United States

By Gary | October 16th, 2009 at 4:40 pm

Yeah thanks guys…Ghana is going bonkers!

By Gary | October 16th, 2009 at 4:42 pm

Shane…

I guess the response here in Ghana is that they’ve won it. It’s all that matters.

By bassem | October 16th, 2009 at 4:45 pm

Celebrate it for AFRICA Gary just go nuts you deserve it, Nice pin for the FIFA this, even red cards and bad referee decisions didn’t help this time! The guys deserve this so much! They gave the whole African Nation pride and honor!!!!!!! Many many thanks to you guys and your whole nation!

Posted from Netherlands

By shane | October 16th, 2009 at 4:46 pm

Gary: I agree that that is all that matters. My comment is just from a watching the game perspective it was not a good match. I was screaming at the TV after every terrible errant pass from Ghana and there were a lot of those. I screamed for joy when Agyemang Badu won it.

Posted from United States

By shane | October 16th, 2009 at 4:47 pm

bassem: Yes that red card was a terrible decision. I couldn’t believe it when the ref showed Addo a straight red.

Posted from United States

By sscouser | October 16th, 2009 at 5:03 pm

I thought the red card was as a result of being a second yellow?

Posted from United States

By sscouser | October 16th, 2009 at 5:07 pm

I take that back. I have just watched the replay.

Posted from United States

By bassem | October 16th, 2009 at 5:23 pm

I don’t want to sound like a cry baby, but its very obvius that the referee’s of the FIFA have a big favor against the African countries. We know this for age’s now. You saw it also by corners and free kicks, when the ball was to near in the goals area he wisles a free kick for the brazilians.

I hate this mentalty of football and the FIFA, thats why we Africans need to give 150% to achive the maximum and we will never get help of a referee, he will never grant even if its so a penalty in favor of an African country against a European or a South American country. But you guys did it, you did it by your selfs and there was no referee stoping you!

A very proud African / Tunisian from the Netherlands!

Posted from Netherlands

By bassem | October 16th, 2009 at 5:30 pm

By the way, here in the Netherlands no news website wants to open with your historical victory in the sport sections, why you think? Cause they are racist, big dirty racists, even when you won they think Africans fraud on pasports with age differences these are the excuses that they give, to let you know how dirty Europeans are. I can tell you this, you have bad and good people every where in the world, but here in Europe the majorty is racist.

And that’s why this winning of a World Cup for Africa is so important. Poor there eyes out those dirty filthy racist around the world! Go Ghana Go Africa!

Posted from Netherlands

By Gary | October 16th, 2009 at 10:03 pm

I wont talk much…why dont you check this????

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/sports_blog/2009/10/soccer-ghana-brazil-world-cup.html

Unbeleivable…

By Gary | October 16th, 2009 at 10:07 pm

While you’re at it, see my personal blog?

garyalsmith.blogspot.com