SAO PAULO (AP) -- It's almost time. The day Brazilians have been anxiously waiting for is finally arriving.
Brazil
plays Croatia on Thursday to get the home World Cup underway, beginning
its quest for a sixth world title almost seven years after the nation
was picked as host.
After so much talk about
delays, protests and problems, fans at last are getting a chance to
cheer for the national team on home soil in football's showcase
tournament.
If Brazil wins the opening game,
the fact that the stadium in Sao Paulo isn't even fully finished yet
will quickly be forgotten. A loss, quite simply, is unthinkable for a
nation whose identity is so closely linked to its football team.
Brazil
hasn't hosted the World Cup since 1950, when it endured a heartbreaking
loss to Uruguay in the last title-deciding game. This time, everybody
knows that only the title will be enough to please the home crowd.
"We
are all eager to get started, we are just counting the days," Brazil
midfielder Ramires said Tuesday. "We know that the fans have confidence
in our team and they are behind us. We have to do everything possible to
try to win this World Cup. We know everybody is expecting us to do it."
Boosted
by the home crowd, Brazil is one of the main favorites to recapture the
trophy won by Spain four years ago in South Africa. But the other usual
World Cup contenders will be trying to spoil the party in the land of
football, including Germany, Italy, Argentina and the Netherlands,
runner-up in 2010.
Brazil is trying to become
the first nation to win the World Cup at home since France did it in
1998. The Brazilians were eliminated in the quarterfinals of the last
two tournaments, to France in 2006 and the Netherlands in 2010.
A
festive World Cup atmosphere has taken over Brazil in the run-up to the
tournament despite the country's preparation problems and the threats
of protests. Brazilians had been slow to get into the World Cup mood,
but now streets are being painted with the green and yellow colors and
local flags are being displayed on windows of homes across the country.
The
crowd support is one of the biggest reasons coach Luiz Felipe Scolari
has been saying loud and clear that Brazil is obligated to win the World
Cup at home. Players also don't hide that they believe Brazil is the
main title favorite.
"We know that we will
have the fans behind us, and together I think we have a great chance of
reaching our final goal, which is to win the World Cup," Brazil starting
midfielder Luiz Gustavo said.
Brazilian fans
had been questioning the national team before last year's Confederations
Cup, but the title in the warm-up tournament was enough to bring the
fans back on board. That tournament also helped show that Brazil has a
team capable of competing against the top football nations today. The
victory came in a final against world champion Spain.
"The
Confederations Cup allowed us to regain our confidence," said Scolari,
the coach when Brazil won its last world title in 2002. "Now we have to
repeat that during the World Cup."
Brazil
begins the tournament having won 15 of its last 16 matches, the only
loss a 1-0 result at Switzerland in the first match after the
Confederations Cup.
Brazil will start the
World Cup with the same lineup that won the Confederations Cup, with
22-year-old Barcelona striker Neymar leading the team.
Croatia,
led by Real Madrid playmaker Luka Modric, will hope to pull off a
monumental upset, but the team won't be at full strength against the
hosts. Coach Niko Kovac won't have forward Mario Mandzukic, who was
red-carded in the team's final qualifier, and experienced midfielder
Niko Kranjcar, who had to be dropped from the squad because of a late
hamstring injury. Novac was already without defender Josip Simunic, who
was banned for 10 games by FIFA for leading fans in a pro-Nazi chant
after a qualifying match.
The high-profile
opening match will be played at the troubled Itaquerao, the construction
of which was delayed so badly that the roof won't even be fully
finished until after the tournament. A crowd of more than 61,000 people
is expected at the Itaquerao, including many heads of states.
The other Group A match will be played between Mexico and Cameroon on Friday in the northeastern city of Natal.
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