JEDDAH, 1 July 2006 — Two giants are set to collide today in the World Cup quarterfinals when Brazil meet France and, what will be evident in this engagement is the supreme test of skills as both former champions hope to come out of the match with their reputations intact.
The last time the two teams met was back in 1998 World Cup final and, on that occasion France defeated Brazil by a stupendous 3-0 margin to silence the samba drums in Paris. This time round the story could well be different.
For France, with some of the heroes of the 1998 game still in their ranks, rely heavily on the aging warhorses to pull them through against a Brazilian side that is slowly, but surely, finding their rhythm.
Many have questioned Zinedine Zidane’s ability to create and score goals in this extravaganza. But in the round of 16, against Spain, he proved to his detractors that he still has some quality juice left in him. His flashy third strike for France against Spain brought back memories of the veteran striker’s flair.
It also showed that Zidane had not lost his moves. Zidane was back in training yesterday after receiving treatment for a minor injury he sustained during the match. And he could yet prove a match-winner.
But the fans here are backing Brazil to move ahead. Former captains of Ittihad, Abdullah Bakur, and Abdulmajeed Kayyal, told Arab News that it is more likely that Brazil would beat France, and Portugal outmaneuvering England.
Bakur said the Brazilians are more skilled when it comes to football. “They are also playing with their best players.”
France hasn’t performed well throughout the tournament, and they just qualified with the 3 points earned after beating Togo.
Kayyal said: “France did not show a great deal of effort during their group matches and the goals they scored were from penalties.
If they had scored in the regular matches, and secured more points, the team would be on a high.”
Gasan Majdali, told Arab News that “Brazil plays tougher and their movement, that is akin to the samba beat, is more aggressive then the French, so I think Brazil is going to win the match and then the entire tournament.”
Bakur and Kayyal noted, that the second quarterfinal of the day, would likely go Portugal’s way. They said England are way behind when it comes to winning against Portugal. And though Portugal will be without many players, who had been given red cards, their chances are still better than England’s.
Kayyal said: “Since winning the 1966 event, England’s performance has been in flashes at best.
