Spain have surged ahead of Brazil to
become the new benchmark for world football, and the only way to
make up ground on the world and European champions is to follow
their example and adopt a long-term approach, coach Mano Menzes
told Reuters in an interview.
Menzes, however, dismissed the idea that the five-times
world champions would copy Spain by playing without a recognised
striker, pointing out that the number nine shirt was part of
Brazilian football culture.
"It's a different type of football, they have worked on it
for years and found their way of doing things," Menezes said of
Spain. "Before they became successful, they prepared hard and
were already winning matches.
"It's obvious that there is a distance between them and us.
We have started afresh in Brazil.
"The champions are always a benchmark and Spain are
outlining the way football is played in the world. They make the
rules today in the way Brazil have done in the past," he added.
"Nobody can take on Spain on equal terms."
Menezes also dismissed suggestions the Spanish passing game
had become dull to watch.
"If they can beat everyone playing this way, it's up to the
others to find a way of overcoming it," he said
"Lots of teams have played possession-based football in the
past, but in the way they do and the way that they keep the
ball, nobody has done that."
Brazil have drifted away from their swaggering, attacking
style over the last few years, opting for a more physical and
direct approach which reached its zenith under Dunga at the last
World Cup.
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Brazil's quarter-final exit at the hands of the Netherlands
in 2010 prompted a reaction against that type of play and
Menezes decided it was time to implement a new philosophy.
"We must not copy Spain, we have to study how to play against
them," said Menezes.
One aspect of Spain's game that Brazil would not be copying
was the so-called "false number nine" which basically involved
playing without a recognised forward.
From the lumbering Serginho Chulapa in 1982 to the clinical
brilliance of Ronaldo between 1998 and 2006, the striker has
always been key figure for Brazil and Menezes said it would stay
that way.
"Our football has always been based on the forwards, and
culturally that is the way our fans want to see the team play. I
don't see why we should give up on this simply because Spain
were successful.
"We have to find a way of winning with forwards."
Although Menezes talks of long-term planning, he faces a
race against time with Brazil to host the 2014 World Cup.
He knows the fans will accept nothing less than a sixth
world title.
Results and performance so far have been mixed, with a
quarter-final exit in the Copa America last year adding to the
pressure.
Menezes will also take charge of the Olympic side in London,
featuring under-23 teams, and will again be under huge pressure
to deliver Brazil's first gold medal.
Vanderley Luxemburgo was fired as both under-23 and senior
coach after failure in Sydney and Dunga survived by the skin of
his teeth after Brazil failed to bring home the gold in Beijing.
"There is always a pressure for results with Brazil, we
can't live under the illusion that we can lose matches and that
nothing will happen," said Menezes.
"We cannot build a Brazilian national team by losing".
Players such as Neymar, Alexandre Pato and Thiago Silva make
Brazil strong title contenders but Menezes said that past
experience showed nothing could be taken for granted.
"We have never won the Olympic Games and if you take a look
back and look at the list of players who have taken part in the
Olympics, we can see that it's not easy.
"The worst mistake we can make is to think we are favourites
before we have played, that's the first step on the way to not
winning."
Menezes hoped that playmaker Paulo Henrique Ganso, a hugely
promising but injury-prone playmaker of the type which Brazil
have struggled to produce, could finally shine at a major event.
"What we want for Ganso, and what he wants as well, is that
this period is different from the one we've had in the past,"
said Menezes.
