The fifth championship of Brazilian Team turns 21 this Friday. From the first game, against Turkey, still in the group stage, to the final duel against Germany, Brazil went through moments of emotion, mistrust and a lot of determination.
The journey towards the 2002 World Cup title began with the national team suffering. Coach Luis Felipe Scolari’s team faced a surprising Turkey, in the first round of the group stage, and left behind on the scoreboard, after a mistake by defender Lúcio and a goal by Hasan. In the second half, the eternal duo Ronaldo and Rivaldo scored the first two goals of the national team in the competition and secured the 2-1 victory.
Five days after the debut, Brazil returned to the field against China, in Jeju, South Korea. Left-back Roberto Carlos opened the scoring with a strong free-kick. The trio of Ronaldo Fenômeno, Ronaldinho Gaúcho and Rivaldo completed the scoring and secured Brazil’s first victory in the Cup: 4-0.
With the qualification to the round of 16 guaranteed, the Selection entered with a mixed team in the last match of the group stage. Against Costa Rica, even without showing great football and without putting pressure, the “Scolari family” thrashed by 5 to 2. The match was marked by a beautiful goal by defensive midfielder Edmílson, who abused his elasticity to complete a cross by Júnior and score the third of the national team.
With a 100% success rate, Brazil faced Belgium in the round of 16. It was then that the star of goalkeeper “São” Marcos shone. The number 1 closed the goal and made incredible defenses, stopping the strong attack of the Belgians, commanded by Marc Wilmots. In the offensive sector, Rivaldo and Ronaldo scored again and declared a 2-0 victory.
In the quarterfinals, the strong selection of England, with David Beckham, Michael Owen and company, was the opponent of the Selection. With a great performance by Ronaldinho Gaúcho, who provided an assist and scored an anthological goal with a free kick, the national team won 2-1 and advanced in the Cup.
Brazil and Türkiye faced each other again in the semifinal of the competition. As in the group stage, the Turks gave the Brazilians a lot of work. With a strong defense and an attack that bet on set pieces, Turkey behaved well on the field. Struggling, the team had to count on the star of Ronaldo Fenômeno, who kicked the ball to score the solitary goal that qualified Amarelinha for the final. The duel still had a remarkable ending, after Denilson was chased by four scorers and stopped with a foul, raising the crowd that attended the Saitama stadium, in Japan.
Final and fifth championship of the Brazilian team
In the big decision, the third in a row that the team played (1994, 1998 and 2002), Felipão’s charges faced Germany. Goalkeeper Oliver Kahn, who would be chosen as the best player in the competition, even tried to stop the Brazilian attack, but was unable to do so. Ronaldo Fenômeno, who scored eight goals in the 2002 World Cup, was responsible for scoring twice and securing Brazil’s fifth championship – the first and only five times in the history of the World Cups.
The cry of “champion” came out of the fans’ throats. The Brazilian streets were taken by the colors green and yellow. The consecration of a group of players who arrived at the tournament discredited. When the right-back and captain Cafu lifted the long-awaited champion’s cup, the name of each player would be forever etched in the memory of all football lovers.
Source: Gazetaesportiva
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