W.T.F.

7/8/14

We were on the move again: this time to watch the Brazil v. Germany semifinal in São Paulo at Bagi and Claudia’s house. I figured it would be fun to watch the game, not just with Fe and Filipe, but with a big group of Brazilian friends. That was with the idea that Brazil would do well and it would be an exciting game to watch. Holy crap, was I wrong.

There are almost no words to describe what happened. Most of the people we were watching the game with were nearly speechless. Brazil’s performance – or lack thereof – was astounding. Granted, Germany had been training for the Cup with the same players for 4 years; they played a typically German game: very organized and precise. But Brazil was an unbelievable mess. And our friends even admitted that the team was thrown together with some big name stars (probably relying too heavily on Neymar) and that if they won the Cup, they would be the “worst” team in Brazilian history to do so. With Neymar and Silva out this game, the team just appeared to dissolve. David Luiz, who is considered a world class defender, was NO WHERE on the defensive line (Nick kept yelling at the tv that Brazil HAD no defensive line); and instead, was up acting like a forward (was he trying to compensate for not having Neymar?), which has sometimes worked to his advantage in the past but not this time. [Nick: In previous games I had noted how Brazil’s back line seemed unorganized and unsure of where each one was; very dangerous as a player one defender thinks is offside is actually onside. Also, poor David Luis was asked to do too much since Brazil basically had no offense. He went up to create offense only to leave his teammates alone in the German counterattack.] The team was all over the field and there was no communication, no organization. They were out played and out hussled. Four goals in six minutes?! How is that even possible? And against Brazil? On their own soil?! Bagi was actually so disappointed with the score of 1-0 that he got up to go to the bathroom to get away from it, and when he came back, it was 5-0! Unbelievable. Our Brazilian friends were so disgusted with their team’s performance that even Oscar’s last minute goal was no consolation.

I’m not sure how the coverage was received elsewhere, but we were stunned. The entire country was stunned. For days after, all the tv shows kept showing a continuous loop of the crying, stunned faces of Brazilians at the game. The crying kids were the hardest to watch. And the worst part…is that I won’t get to see Nick with a Neymar haircut. :o( [Nick: In the World Cup, I didn’t expect Costa Rica to win but what I did hope was that we wouldn’t have an embarrassing game where we lost by a lot (luckily that did not happened). I never thought it possible that I would see Brazil fall victim to such a loss. I was so sad; it was maybe even worse that CR losing in penalties because CR fulfilled way more than expectations while Brazil fell way short.]

But the day wasn’t a complete loss. We all headed over to Filipe’s parents’ house for a belated birthday party for Camila (her actual birthday was while we were in Salvador). And thank goodness for that! I think a little kid’s birthday party was just the happy distraction we needed after such a terrible loss (which Brazilians are calling “the shame of shames”). Nick and I helped Fe make brigadeiros (Brazilian chocolate truffles), and then helped Isabela add to her new World Cup sticker book. Both sides of the family came together for the girls and it was wonderful to be invited; they have a very beautiful and loving family. [Nick: Everyone in Fe and Filipe’s family has been so welcoming. It has been such a privilege to make brigadeiros and homemade cakes and really get to know the life of a Brazilian much more than if we were travelling alone.]

Fe's side of the family