Brazil delighted to have challenges opponents to the next match

JOHANNESBURG, Jun 18: After struggling against lowly-ranked North Korea, Brazil is looking forward to facing better opponents at the World Cup, reports AP.

The five-time champion Brazilians are hoping that more offensive teams such as Ivory Coast and Portugal will actually make things easier for them in Group G.

North Korea’s solid defensive setup caused problems for Brazil, which needed two second-half goals to win Tuesday’s match 2-1 at Johannesburg’s Ellis Park.

Brazil is hoping Ivory Coast will not take such a defensive approach at Soccer City on Sunday and give some space for the Brazilian attack to exploit.

“We don’t think they will come out defending so much,” Brazil striker Robinho said. “It’s a very tough challenge when the other team is only trying to defend, it becomes very complicated for us.” Ivory Coast is known for having a more offensive-minded team, and is likely to try to attack more because it needs a victory to get into a good position in the group following the 0-0 draw with Portugal.

“It’s easier to defend than to create,” Brazil striker Nilmar said. “But the Ivory Coast has a lot of quality players who play in top clubs. They will be trying to beat us so they can advance from the group.”

Coached by former defensive midfielder Dunga, Brazil has had difficulties against overly defensive teams which come out marking hard from the start. In World Cup qualifying, Brazil was held to 0-0 home draws against Bolivia, Colombia and Venezuela.

“When we play with a more offensive team we usually have more space, but against a team playing completely on defense it’s harder, you have to keep insisting,” Dunga said after the match against North Korea.

Brazil had no problems when it faced the likes Italy, England and Portugal in friendlies ahead of the World Cup. “It’s harder when the opponent has 11 players behind the line of the ball,” Nilmar said. “We already expect that, but it makes it a lot harder for us.”

And to make things even harder for Brazil, the team’s top playmaker, Kaka, is struggling after a season filled with injuries with Real Madrid and so far has not been able to add creativity to the Brazilian midfield.

Dunga said that even the better teams tend to play more conservatively against Brazil, so he needs to try to find ways to break through these defensive setups.

The coach has tested several alternatives coming into the World Cup, including playing with right back Daniel Alves in midfield and using the skillful Robinho as a playmaker instead of a striker.

“The secret is to have patience,” Robinho said. “We have to keep passing the ball around from side to side until we find an opening. We can’t try to rush plays.”

Brazil was held by North Korea until the 55th minute in the opener, when right back Maicon made a run on the right side of the area and scored from a tight angle as the Korean goalkeeper appeared to go for the cross.

A victory against the Ivory Coast will virtually secure Brazil a spot in the next round. The Brazilians will close play in Group G against Portugal on June 25 in Durban.