Fútbolita

Julio Cesar (Internazionale),Maicon (Internazionale),Lúcio (Internazionale),Juan (Roma),Felipe Melo (Juventus), Michel Bastos (Lyon),Elano (Galatasaray),Gilberto Silva (Panathinaikos),Luis Fabiano (Sevilla), Kaká (wearing the #10 shirt) and Robinho (Santos).

These, ladies and gentlemen are the 11 men who will win this World Cup.

If each and every Brazilian is sure about it now, it wasn’t always like this. Since Dunga’s list came up, a lot of talking was needed to make us believe again.

Dunga’s choice for Brazilian Squad divided opinions in Brazil. Most of common supporters, hated, at first, Dunga’s selection. Why? Since last year, players like Neymar and Ganso improved their game style and got fans attention. It was surprising that on May 11^th, their names weren’t in his list.

In order to represent a more complete “face” of Brazilian supporters, I spoke to three different people, with different levels of understanding about football and different cities. (It was a little hard, but awesome).

Brazil squad is full of players who doesn’t play in Brazil anymore, and that made people feel a little upset, because they didn’t know exactly what to expect from these players. In the other hand, fans who are into European Football, thought Dunga’s choice was nothing but great.

Braitner Moreira is an exception. He runs the quattrotratti.com, a blog wich is totally focused on Italian football, and found Dunga’s choice “lame”. With severe critics to almost all of our players, he is not optimistic.

Ana Beliza is a brazilian journalist who lives in Pernambuco and is a passionate supporter. She is very confident and happy about Brazil’s squad. “Our squad is totally able of bringing us the 6^th championship. I trust in our brazilian boys”, she says. And she is ready to cheer for Brazil!

Other absence in our squad is Adriano. His odd (not to say irreponsable) behaviour may be the reason why he is out. Bernardo Almeida is a student and commented that episode: “ I find it great that Adriano wasn’t on Dunga’s list. Calling him up would be a a revival of our loss in 2006. Now we are ready to win.”

Então, vamos lá!

Signing off,

Raio, Your Brazilian Futbolita.

Oooh, there’s so much controversy surrounding Joana Machado and Adriano! Earlier last week, the Brazilian striker told journalists at a press conference that they are no longer together. Que tática! It’s to get people to leave him alone as he meditates in preparation for the World Cup.

Anyway, earlier this week, she was seen at a children’s shop buying clothes fueling rumours that she is pregnant. “She said she is not pregnant and even laughed at suspicions, saying he has a child of 4 years and it is very normal (for her) to go into that type of store to buy things for him,” said a friend of hers.

Adriano is finally settling down! Of course, compared to fetuses like Pato, his impending marriage to samba dancer (naturally), Joana Machado seems a little unexpected. She’d better be careful, because he was supposed to marry Cassia Menega last year... and look what happened.

Anyway, their wedding is scheduled to take place in Buzios, Rio, in May later this year. Adriano is apparently being overprotective these days and has not allowed Joana to leave the house. She hasn’t even been “to the gym in three months” and “really misses the beach”. O que ela está falando?! Knowing Adriano, it’s not like she isn’t getting any workout in the house…

via Ego

So your favourite Churrascaria King, Adriano, wants you to know that he never used drugs in his life and is annoyed that people are throwing all these unjust accusations at him! Relax, mano… tudo é bom. You know that Senhor Mourinho still keeps your file at home and occasionally sifts through it when he’s not on Skype with Z-Ibracadabra!

“I’ve never used drugs – nothing was ever proven. Suddenly, because I live in the slum, people associate me with it,” he said.

His fiancee, Joana Machado, who made a big fuss about finding him with other Flamengo players in the slum in the wee hours of the morning, was also involved in her own controversy known in Brazil as “episódio Chatuba”. Said Adri : “She was not wrong and she did not assault me. If the person likes you, she wants to take care of you. She was afraid because I did not arrive on the time that was determined.”

via Aracatinet, Globo

It’s time to celebrate this week’s Sunday Señor but seeing that it’s Carnival, Valentine’s and Lunar New Year weekend (for all our amigos chinos!)… we’re putting el futbol aside to share some fantastic photos from Brasil and parts of Europe! Yes, futbolitas, it’s Carnaval weekend and even Cafu joined the battle of the samba schools!! Contrary to popular belief, it’s never always about Adriano’s girlfriends… there was even a Ronaldo Lima float! Não se surpreenda. Sit back and enjoy.

via Gettyimages, Reuters

So much emotion… havia tanto amor! Even King Churrascaria himself, Adriano, had to choke back his tears after the fans came out to show their support following Flamengo’s win of the Brasileirao Title on Sunday. “I can hardly believe it…I’m remembering all I went through, I don’t even have strength left to celebrate,” said Adriano. “Really, this is a dream, to be a champion again and, above all, to be happy.”

Flamengo came back from a goal down to defeat Gremio 2-1 with goals from David and Ronaldo Angelim. It took 17 years, pessoas... that’s older than Iker Munain‘s entire age.

More than 100,000 fans went crazy at the Maracana – and truth be told, they stole the show. Mengao are very lucky to have some of the most creative fans. These people should be on Project Runway or something. From Barack’s Bro to a dude who looks like a cross between P.Diddy and Flava Flav, they pulled out all the stops to make the finale an occasion to remember!!

Anyway, Adriano has not ruled out a return to Europe next season but he declared that his family has been instrumental in his success at Flamengo. “I’ve had a lot of proposals, I’m not going to lie to anyone about that,” he said.  “But, certainly, what’s important to me today and was always in first place is my happiness. Everything I do from here on will be well thought through,” he said.

Photos via Reuters, AFP

• There was a time… when Farmer Fred was an incredibly promising striker for the selecao. Now, all we’re left with are memories!!! Isto e triste, but at least Hulk’s around these days. Anyway, speaking of Fred, he helped his home side Fluminense to a nice 3-0 victory over Sport last night. Poor Sport, their beauty queen won the title ‘Musa Brasileirao’ this year but their performances on the field have been dismal.
• Sao Paulo was handed a 3-2 defeat in the hands of Botafogo despite goals from Washington and Jorge Wagner. What’s happening tricolor?! They’re supposed to be formidable… or maybe not. Botafogo were the ones who needed it more to prevent themselves from being relegated. “Next week, we will have a tough match. However, enthusiasm will carry on and will help us to keep from the risk of being lowered into the second division,” said their coach Estevam Soares.
• So Adriano had too much barbecued chicken and wasn’t able to help Flamengo in their goaless draw at the Maracana. They wasted their chance to go top of the table (desculpe, the Lords of KFC were at work). Anyway, Kleberson thinks they still have a good chance. “We haven’t lost anything yet, we had to win our last three matches, we didn’t manage that, but we still managed to get one point closer to Sao Paulo,” he declared. In other words, he means “your drumsticks will not work against Adriano”

via Reuters, Globo

So apparently Barbecue King, Adriano is very much in love with his current girlfriend, Cássia Menega (of course you remember Joana Machado) and plans to marry her. According to his friend David Brazil, who is the country’s most “famous event promoter”, he is satisfied with his current stint at Flamengo and ‘everything is going well’ for him.

Well, that’s what he told Machado as well before breaking up with her! But if he’s going through with it, good for Adriano. Still, that doesn’t mean he can still play for the seleção. Ele não pode correr! He can’t even run!

via Ego

It’s Day Three of the festa do samba and while no one brought out the zany birthday cakes yet, Saint Kaka thinks BBQ king Adriano is a joke! Also, poor manos had to do field exercises in the rain again as you can tell from the case of flat hair syndrome.

“I think Brazil’s preparation is different in 2010 compared to 2006. We have peace of mind to train and are prepared to perform well in the World Cup,” he said, referring to that unfortunate Weggis training camp in Switzerland, where even Beyoncé should’ve performed!

Adriano, on the other hand, has told members of the press to ‘give him a little respect’. Oh, desculpe BBQ King! “Dunga always defends me and I know that many things (that are written) are not true. I ask for a little more love. I came here to be happy. I need that respect. I am here to represent Brazil and to regain my happiness,” he implored.

“It’s hard to send my son to school and hear (something bad). Be careful (when you) write certain things in the newspaper because it hurts too much. There’s always a person playing ‘lip service’ to my mother on the street. I have my personal life like everyone else. If these things (said about him) were true, I would not be the league’s top scorer and one of the in best competition. That really hurts. Even in the selection.”

Meanwhile, they’ve uncovered Elano’s Twin in Granja Comary – Sidimar from the U-17 squad! What on Earth… the young defender looks like he can be tipo’s older brother. “My mates call me Elano too (laughing),” said Sidimar, who was pleased with the comparison. The U-17 boys will be competing in Nigeria in the Sub17 World Cup and all of them have been getting front row seats at their seniors’ training sessions. We need that ice-cream truck, pronto!

Fotos de R.Ribeiro/Reuters

Bom dia and welcome to Day 2 of the Brazilian Bootcamp! Both our coach and goalkeeper are enjoying a Soul Sista moment in the photo above  (Dunga : “Gurrrl, you got strength!” The Cesar : “Adriano ain’t got nuthin’ on me, lady. Uh-uh.” ) And that’s because Juliolita had a field day during yesterday’s training -  saving almost everyone’s shots at goal and getting teased in the process.

Barbecue King, Adriano was really pumped up and put many goals past Julio, but when his former Flamengo mano saved it, there were plenty of jokes. “Are you kicking with all your strength? What do you want? You (Adriano) are always like popcorn to me!” yelled The Cesar. Later, Dunga made the tipos shoot from a further distance, and this time, many of them missed the target. “For those who do not know, the goal of this sport is to score!” joked Julio again.

Meanwhile, Kaka looks like he just saw an ice-cream truck pulling up into the driveway. Unfortunately, Miranda knows that the best person to ask for Cadbury hot chocolate is still Adriano. Damn, tipo brought the whole kitchen! And since it rained, everyone had to warm down quickly and throw on their windbreakers. They had to do their interviews in the rain… and damn, we hate it when that happens! Still, we spotted our worried looking friend, Rodrigo, wearing a hoodie and windbreaker in the clips below. Você olhar engraçado, tio!

Fotos de R.Ribeiro/Getty

Tudo bem, people?! Welcome to Day 1 of the Selecao bootcamp…. a staple here at Futbolita. And in true spirit, we just did a thorough assessment of the selecao’s arrival at Granja Comary with our Brazilian amiga here, Ana. Gata wants to marry Zagallo but he’s old enough to be her grandfather, so she has now shifted all thoughts to Julio Cesar. On the other hand, Fabulouso is looking sleek in white… he needs to pose for a furniture catalogue agora!

So manos were sent for gym conditioning (to “maintain muscles and detoxification”) ,with Senor Pablo Paixão. This was accompanied by light field training and running exercises. Nilmar is deep in concentration… (while el amigo Lucas is presumably talking about English tea) so do not disturb!

Of course, playing at a high altitude is another issue for selecao. As such, the team’s doctor Jose Luis Runco has confiscated the potato chips from Adriano’s room. “I recommend a light diet for the team – with fruit and carbohydrates. Our position in relation to games at altitude does not change and I hope that FIFA changes it,” he said. “It is advisable to practice the sport at (a suitable) altitude because we run a risk of compromising the life of a human being.”

Added the excited André Santos. : “The secret is to adapt as quickly as possible to play a great game.”

Fotos de R.Ribeiro

via Globo

Ah, flip flops... you can’t get any more Brazilian than that! De qualquer maneira, there’s been some confusion over at the Flamengo training camp. Apparently, their black slippers are so similiar that everyone ends up wearing the wrong pair after training. The only way around the problem is to place a sticker with players’ shirt number on each pair. That way, everyone goes home happy. Seriously though… did they all decide one day to go shopping for the exact same pair of black slippers?

Interestingly, Adriano doesn’t need stickers to label his flip-flops – his is the only white pair in the whole bunch!

• Botafogo’s fans made a banner teasing Fluminense’s injured striker, Fred in their 0-0 home draw yesterday. The striker has been suffering muscular problems in his thigh and hasn’t played a single match since July 23rd. The banner read : “Hey Vilma, where’s Fred?”.
• He may not have scored against Chile last Wednesday (it was Nilmar’s day, pessoas!) but Adriano scored twice on Saturday to lead Flamengo to a 3-0 victory over Sport Recife at the Maracana. Ok, we’ll stop with the barbecue jokes for now. It’s only fair! (Watch the goals below)
• Palmeiras fell to a 3-2 defeat away to Vitoria at the Barradao stadium, but still remain as the league leaders with 44 points.
• Thankfully, Sao Paulo defeated Avaí 2-0 with goals from Dagoberto and Hugo. Yes, the tricolor are back to winning ways and are now level on 43 points with Internacional.

So it’s Day 2 of the Soldados Bootcamp and they’re already bullying Robinho! Anyway, the manos did field work yesterday while Daniel Alves, Luisão, Ramires and Elano were immediately sent to the gym upon arrival. Muito grave, indeed!

For training, Dopey divided the squad into two teams- Julio Cesar, Maicon, Lúcio, Miranda, André Santos; Gilberto Silva, Felipe Melo, Julio Baptista, Kaká; Robinho and Luís Fabiano formed one side while Victor, Cristian, Gérson, Juan and Filipe; Sandro, Lucas, João Pedro and Wellington; Nilmar and Adriano made up the other. Crowds formed outside Granja Comary to watch the selecao in action and the U-17 squad also trained with them in preparation for the Copa Sendai in Japan.

These bombshells will board a flight to Rosario at 8pm later tonight and arrive at the Rosario International Airport around midnight. They’d better distribute packets of oreo and milk or else…..

Photos via R.Ribeiro

Ah, an exciting week of international futbol is finally upon us as our hombres prepare to face The Dona’s Argentina on Saturday! Yesterday, the Brazilian Bombshells eagerly assembled at the Tom Jobin International Airport (in Rio) before proceeding to Granja Comary. On arrival, everyone received a welcome snack before heading to bed. Yes, it’s beginning to sound a lot like pre-school…

As you can probably tell, manos were excited to meet each another again (Julio Baptista and Lucas both look thrilled). Barbecue King, Adriano, was also delighted to be back with the selecao but admitted that he "only personally knows Nilmar and Victor" from Dopey’s current squad. Uh, no problem. He’ll make friends just as long as he doesn’t locate an All-You-Can-Eat buffet spread in Rosario.

The players also attended a commercial event for Gillette last night and Julio Cesar, Felipe Melo, Adriano, Juan and Lucio were on hand to test their new series of razors. "Drawing with Argentina will be good enough. If we win, it will have to be with a beard, hair and moustache," joked Julio Cesar as he tried to shave( seriously???). But the worst line had to come from Adriano who was asked by former model, Monique Evans, if any of his girlfriends had ever shaved him. "Not yet, but if you want to…" he replied, laughing. Have you seen Monique Evans?

• Unfortunately Brasileirao’s reigning top scorer, Adriano hasn’t been living up to his name. Instead, the king of churrascarias wasted his chances during Gremio’s 4-1 drubbing of Flamengo yesterday. Goals from Perea, Réver and a double from Jonas chalked up three points for the Gaúchos, who’re now in a better position to secure a spot in the Libertadores. Sorry, Ana…now you can’t make those tricolor jokes at me!
  
• Speaking of Sao Paulo, they’ve extended their winning streak to six games after a 2-1 win over Sport thanks to goals from Washington and Hugggoooooo.
  
• Palmeiras battled to a 1-1 draw against Botafogo who were the first to score in the 23rd minute. Lucio Flavio fed the ball to Andre Lima who blasted it beautifully into the net. [Watch the video below!]
  
• Corinthians, who’re still without the injured Ronaldo, defeated Atletico Mineiro 2-0 at the Pacaembu stadium to end their five-match winless streak. The four-time national champions have not won a game since their 2-1 result against Vitoria on July 23.

via Globo

• Sao Paulo are in the top four of the Brazilian championship after beating Goias 3-1 on Sunday. They’ve won their last five matches and have been unbeaten for the last eight games. Way to go, Tricolor! They started out slow in the early stages of the season and the Libertadores Cup. It’s all smooth now, eh? “The Sao Paulo supporters recognised their team, recognised the football we are delivering and each time I see the Morumbi filling up more,” coach Ricardo said. “It’s been 12 matches in 48 days, in Europe that’s madness.”
• BBQ King Adriano scored his 10th goal of the season to give Flamengo a 1-0 home win over Corinthians in the Maracana. “I missed so many (chances)…I will concentrate more to get it right more,” he said after the game. [See video below]
• Santos drew 2-2 with Avaí. They threw away their early lead, and despite fielding Neymar in the later part of the game, they were unable to get all 3 points. Somewhere, you know Pele is rolling his eyes. Elsewhere, Vitória also managed a 2-2 draw against Fluminense
• Coritiba has sacked their coach Rene Simoes after their 3-1 home defeat in the hands of Cruzeiro. They now lie in 18th place and Rene is the 24th coach to lose his job in the championship this season.

Photo via globo

Adriano aka the Favela and Barbecue King has been wearing jerseys with the numbers 29, 27, 92, 90 and 100 since his return to Flamengo in April. But from today, he’ll finally get to wear the all-important number 9 shirt after an Internet poll was conducted among the club’s fans. Well, he can wear #9 at Flamengo but the prospect of wearing the same shirt under Dunga… impossível!

In other news, Flamengo and Corinthians are slated to play a friendly match in Palestine in September as a peace initiative promoted by the Brazilian government. Well, you know Lula. All he needs to do is to send a Brazilian player to various countries and everything will be solved. Oh, if only it were that easy!

Barbecue king, Adriano, celebrated his ‘return’ to football by scoring in Flamengo’s 2-1 victory over Atlético-PR yesterday. To be quite honest, even our 2 year old cousin would’ve been able to score a goal like that as well. The commentator went delirious – and out of breath. If Adriano hadn’t converted, it would’ve been a disaster.

Anyway, he still has time to practise his shots. After all, he ain’t part of Dopey’s Brasil squad that will meet later today.

In other games, Paulo Henrique Lima scored goal for Santos as they thrashed Corinthians 3-1. And finally, three-time defending champions Sao Paulo enjoyed their first win of the tournament by hammering Cruzeiro 3-0 at the Morumbi. Ah – about time, eh tipos?!