The Hindu : Sport / Football : To the beat of the Samba

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To the beat of the Samba

Brazil coach introduced a bold 4-2-4 formation in 1958

The 1958 World Cup in Sweden brought together some of the great names of football such as goalkeeper Lev Yashin of Russia, Frenchmen Just Fontaine and Raymond Kopa, with the Brazilians bringing a team that included Garrincha and a certain 17-year-old named Pele.

Some other new kids on the block were the Russians, who continued England's troubles during the final stages, eliminating Walter Winterbottom's side in a first round playoff (1-0). The English were still reeling from the Munich air disaster in which eight Manchester United players perished, including talented internationals Duncan Edwards, Roger Byrne and Tommy Taylor.

Another sad note was the absence of Frenchman Jules Rimet, the founder of the competition, who had died two years earlier.

The French team did him proud, however, with easily its best tournament to date, riding the silky skills of Kopa, Roger Piantoni and the prolific marksman Fontaine, who set a still standing record with 13 goals, to reach the semifinals.

Despite the brave efforts of the host nation, the tournament quickly evolved into a festival of green and gold — the colours of Brazil.

The South Americans had all the ideal ingredients to cook up a winning formula, notably an innovative coach in Vicente Feola, who introduced the 4-2-4 formation, and a line-up sprinkled with stars like Garrincha, Pele, Didi and Amarildo.

The Brazilians danced their way through the first round (two wins and a draw) before stumbling in a tricky quarterfinal against Wales, when Pele came to the rescue with the only goal of the game.

Hat-trick by Pele

France awaited it in the semifinals and although Kopa and company held the Brazilians in check for the first 45 minutes, Pele exploded in the second period, bagging a hat-trick that gave the scoreline an emphatic look at 5-2.

The host, meanwhile, progressed steadily and when it came from behind to dislodge West Germany's crown with a 3-1 win in Gothenburg, Sweden had booked a place in its first World Cup final.

Once again, as in Berne four years earlier, the final was played in wet conditions, but when Nils Liedholm gave Sweden a shock lead after just four minutes to put Brazil behind for the first time in the tournament, no one was complaining. But that goal simply woke Brazil up, and Vava, Pele and Zagallo scored five times between them to run away with the title.

It was the beginning of a wonderful era for the “Auriverde”.

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