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Monday, Jun 26, 2006

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The two shades of yellow

Parreira's first coaching assignment was with Ghana in 1968

BERGISCH GLADBACH: Brazil is expecting tough marking in its World Cup second round match against Ghana on Tuesday and wants the referee to protect its players.

The teams will meet in Dortmund for a spot in the quarterfinals of the World Cup.

``We know they have a team very strong physically, they mark very hard,'' two-time FIFA player of the year Ronaldinho said on Saturday. ``We'll have to find ways to move around and escape that type of defence.''

Ghana committed 76 fouls in its three first round matches, the most by any of the 32 teams. Brazil committed 35, the fewest among all nations.

``They play very aggressively,'' Brazil coach Carlos Alberto Parreira said. ``We have seen the statistics and I hope the referees are able to curb this, especially to protect the soccer played with quality.''

The Ghana players have received 12 yellow cards thus far, second only to Tunisia.

Brazil struggled when it faced physical opponents similar to Ghana, picking up shaky wins against Croatia and Australia.

Parreira said Ghana is the ``biggest surprise of the World Cup'' so far. ``It's a team that needs to be respected, it made three good games in a very difficult group,'' he said. ``It eliminated the Czech Republic, which was one of the favourites to advance to the next round.''

Ghana finished second to Italy in Group E, which also included the United States. It lost to Italy 2-0 and beat the Czechs — ranked No. 2 by FIFA — by the same score. It defeated the United States 2-1 in its final match.

``They are not naive anymore, it's going to be quite difficult,'' Parreira said. ``They are very confident and very strong physically.''

Nothing to lose

Parreira, whose first coaching job was with Ghana in 1968, added that the biggest advantage for Ghana is that it has nothing to lose against the defending champion, which feels under an obligation to win.

Robinho injured

It still wasn't certain whether Parreira would be able to count on Robinho, who injured his right thigh in Brazil's training session on Saturday in Bergisch Gladbach, just outside Cologne.

The striker, who started against Japan, injured his leg after a shot on goal at the end of Brazil's practice. He put his hand on the thigh immediately after and did not continue practicing.

Brazil doctor Jose Luiz Runco said it appeared to be a ``light injury,'' but added that the full extent of the injury would not be known until Friday.

Brazil beat Ghana 8-2 the only time the teams have met — a 1996 friendly in Brazil. — AP

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