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In the coming years, when this stage is a white elephant that collapses, they will sit in almost empty stands, hear the wind whisper through the marsh that surrounds it and believe what they can hear are the ghosts of the giants. In three games, Kazan won the winners of 11 World Cups. First Germany went, tasteless against South Korea. Then, in an epic full of blood, Argentina was swept away by France. And then, Brazil is the biggest of all, bridle and exceeded by Belgium, which will face France in the semifinal on Tuesday.
Brazil has chances. Some ricochets in the box do not fall in their direction. The hysteria that always surrounds them, the sense of desire and expectation, perhaps becomes sometimes inhibitory. Titus, almost certainly, will be blamed, because that's what the rulers are for, but his half-time move to a 4-4-2, putting Roberto Firmino in Willian's place and moving Gabriel Jesus to the right, improved things
The problem was that at that time, they were already 2-0, having been eviscerated at the break by Kevin De Bruyne. Renato Augusto withdrew one, ending up in Philippe Coutinho's head 14 minutes from the end, but it was not enough.
He almost made fun of the end of the season in the Premier League but Roberto Martínez deserves the victory. His approach was daring, in a striking way, putting together a team that looked like the kind of alignment you would use to chase a match if you were a goal at half an hour of play – like, well sure, they had been against Japan
Marouane Fellaini and Nacer Chadli, hero of this return, were included and the system was surprising: a 4-3-3 with De Bruyne deployed as a fake nine and Romelu Lukaku pulling right, apparently to try to attack the space between Miranda and Marcelo.
Martínez, perhaps observing that the goal that Brazil conceded in the tournament came from a corner led by Swiss Steven Zuber, had decided that an air assault was the best option.
In the first match of Belgium, he could perhaps also welcome his De Bruyne deployment which, diving deep, opened the defense with a ball that is delicious in all respects, except the player who He released.
But when Chadli came to the first post, Gabriel Jesus and Fernandinho jumped together, the ball turning away from the midfielder's right arm.
What was really striking, however, was the dangerousness of Belgium during the break. They have risen to a certain extent. Thiago Silva grouped an early corner against a post and Paulinho missed his kick when well placed. Thibaut Courtois made several stops and bodies were put in play again and again. But that has always been the case.
After all, it's a Brazil that has won 20 of its 25 games under Titus and who averaged more than two goals per game. Belgium would always have to endure and survive. However, they also crossed Brazil several times
De Bruyne, in this retired role, led the match, Brazil not seeming to be able to decide who should take it. Hazard and Lukaku, shooting away, had regular room. It was Lukaku who was the architect of the second goal, carrying the ball ahead of his own half, beating Fernandinho and Paulinho and laying the ball directly at De Bruyne. A step inside, a look at the shot and the ball shot Alisson's right hand in the lower corner: a brilliant goal and only the first time Brazil had conceded two in a match under Titus
He had made him such a controversial character in the tournament he was early, although this time he had nudged himself on the back of the head of an assortment of elbows of Fellaini. After that, however, his involvement, from the point of view of the game, was irregular, so much so that Thomas Meunier felt emboldened to make offensives on the Belgian right. There was even, oddly enough, a second-half incident when he got entangled with Fellaini and fell into the surface, then seemed to discourage the Serb referee, Milorad Mazic, from checking the VAR.
Marcelo, Philippe Coutinho and Neymar had always had the appearance of an adventurous left side for Brazil; here he was submerged by the Belgian right of Meunier, Fellaini and Lukaku. It was not the collapse of four years ago, or something like that, but it was, again, a brazilian team unable to handle an adept opponent on the counter. .
Neymar flickered. Firmino slowly imposed it. Dives of Gabriel Jesus and Neymar, a race of Douglas Costa, the surges of the replacement Augusto could not save them. They would have hardly been able to exert more pressure in the last minutes but an exhausted Belgium, somehow, has hung and Brazil, like Argentina and Germany before them, succumbed to Kazan, the cemetery of the great.
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