Without Neymar, Selecao might get more potent against all Odds!

  So now Selecao’s mercurial No. 10, Neymar is out of the remaining part of the football carnival in his homeland. The darling of the home crowd broke into tears yester-night as he was carried off the field, with a broken bone after a nasty airborne challenge from Colombia’s Juan Zuniga in their 2-1 win Quarter final match at Estadio Governador Placido. The injury took some gloss off the host nation’s win and a semi-final clash against Germany on Tuesday at Estadio Meinerao, Belo Horizonte.

  Yes the Brazillian shave sadly lost their match-winner to injury, as the tournament nears its most crucial stage. But hey, Willian has been waiting in the ranks and his substitute appearance shave showed some of his glimpses that have made him one of Chelsea’s midfield mainstays, in his first season at the English Premier League club. Again he combines flair with physicality and hard-running that makes him a handful for opposing defenses. He missed his spot-kick against Chile in the Round of 16 thriller, but if he gets his full chance against the Germans on Tuesday, then Brazil is still in safe hands. Chelsea’s Oscar has been relegated to the fringes in the tournament so far due to Neymar’s exploits, so the absence of the latter might be a blessing for Oscar to lift Brazil over the Germans.

  With Neymar’s dazzling skills and potent goal-scoring touch, Luis Felipe Scolari mainly centered on the Barcelona. However, with his absence in such a crucial stage, the entire team will now share the responsibility and might pose an even devastating threat to Joachim Loew’s German side, in their last-four clash. The mercurial No 10 will be sadly watching from the sidelines, but Brazil should summon their energies and give the Jules Rimet Trophy to the football-mad country, just as Neymar has been fighting to before the injury cut short his dreams. the combined statistics of Jo, Hulk and Fred as the other striking options for Selecao might not be that inspiring or even come close to those of Neymar, both the assists and goals, but they should ably stand in for the injured talisman and lead Selecao to a record sixth crown in front of the adoring home fans.

  The Samba Boys are at home, they have a world cup winning bench of Luis Felipe Scolari (Japan/ South Korea, 2002) and Carlos Alberto Perreira (USA, 994) and a vocal home crowd that should give them the necessary lift, as they face a tough German side that barely scrapped past the French, in the second Quarter final match. A Mat Hummels header from a Tony Kroos free kick guided them to a 1-0 win, as they survived a devastating second half onslaught from France. In the first last eight match, the hosts dominated Colombia and settled for a 2-1 win that was sealed by an audacious David Luiz free kick, after James Rodriguez penalty had cancelled out captain Thiago Silva’s opener. Both teams struggled past their opponents and their semi-final clash should be a tantalizing one.

  The only other concern for Brazil is Captain Thiago Silva’s booking that rules him out of the semi-final.  But his absence alongside that of Neymar, should not lock them out against the Germans, despite being serious blows.Dante, Henrique, Willian and Ramires should all rise up to the occasion and step into the big shoes of Neymar and Thiago Silva, on Tuesday against a gritty German side.

Reach the writer at jeanmutua@yahoo.com, mutuamaundu14@gmail.com