Chapter 287: The World Cup Kicks Off, Spain vs. Netherlands: A Rematch of the Finals!
The protest by the Spanish Football Association had some effect. With FIFA's intervention, the Brazilians had to get serious and disperse the troublesome Brazilian fans outside the training grounds.
However, this incident caused a rift between the fans of the two countries.
"Brazilians are so unsportsmanlike! As hosts, they resort to such underhanded tactics. Are they afraid of losing?"
"Haha, we haven't even faced them yet, and they're already playing dirty tricks. If we meet them in the knockout stage, who knows, they might send gunmen to take out our players!"
"You know, I wouldn't put it past them!"
"Right, considering the crime rate in Brazil's favelas, bribing a few gunmen to create a terror incident is entirely possible!"
"You guys are scaring me! Such outrageous things wouldn't really happen, right?"
"Who knows? This place is chaotic, and anything could happen!"
This topic stirred up a lot of discussion online, casting a negative light on this World Cup.
Brazilians hoped to use this World Cup to improve their country's image and attract tourists, boosting their economy.
If such negative news scared tourists away and damaged the country's reputation, it would be a huge loss.
Thus, the Brazilian police had to step in urgently, promising strict measures to ensure the safety of players attending the World Cup in Brazil.
However, the Spanish team remained skeptical of these assurances.
Del Bosque issued a curfew for the players, telling them not to wander off. Even if they went out, they should not go alone and avoid places with poor security.
Actually, Brazil's security wasn't that bad. In wealthy areas, the police presence was strong, and patrols were frequent, so the situation wasn't too dire.
But in the favelas, it was a different story.
Fortunately, the Spanish players were there for football, not sightseeing. With training and matches, they didn't have much free time.
Given the tough competition ahead, they had no mind for sightseeing.
Time flew by, and soon it was time for the World Cup opening match.
As tradition dictates, the host nation, Brazil, would play the opening game.
Their opponents were the Croatian team from the Balkans.
Brazil, being the host and a top contender for the title, faced Croatia, which was not a traditional powerhouse and was considered a third-tier European team.
Therefore, pre-match predictions heavily favored a home win for Brazil.
Since Group B's matches would start the next day, Del Bosque had the team watch the opening match together.
On June 12, at 5 PM, the 20th World Cup's opening match kicked off at the Corinthians Arena in Sao Paulo.
The match drew massive attention, with the 75,000-capacity stadium packed with over 80,000 people, many of whom were ticketless Brazilian fans.
The scene was a sea of green.
The Brazilian fans were highly enthusiastic. Boosted by the cheers of over 80,000 home fans, Brazil launched a fierce attack on Croatia right from the start.
As a top contender against an obscure team, a Brazilian victory seemed a given.
However, the match's progression surprised everyone.
Croatia played aggressively, threatening Brazil's goal in the 4th and 6th minutes.
Unfortunately, their forwards couldn't capitalize on these chances and failed to score.
But Croatia's efforts paid off.
In the 11th minute of the first half, a cross from Croatia's left side led to an own goal by Brazilian defender Marcelo.
The score was 0:1, and Brazil was trailing early!
This was the first own goal in Brazil's 98 World Cup matches and the first time in World Cup history that the opening goal was an own goal.
Marcelo unintentionally set two records!
Seeing their player score an own goal, the Brazilian fans were in an uproar.
The Croatian players were also stunned. What seemed like a harmless cross turned into a goal, making them wonder if they could upset the powerful hosts.
Buoyed by this turn of events, Croatia played more proactively, putting Brazil on the back foot.
Brazilian fans watched with anxiety. If beating Croatia was this tough, how could they win the World Cup?
Trailing in the score made the Brazilian players anxious, affecting their performance.
In the 14th minute, Brazil launched a quick attack down the right flank. Oscar's cross missed narrowly, with Neymar unable to connect despite his best efforts.
Neymar gave his all, leaping for the ball but landing painfully from over a meter high, a sight that looked excruciating.
In the 26th minute, Neymar elbowed Modric while contesting for the ball, earning a yellow card from the referee.
This clash of the number 10s was tense, with both at fault, but Neymar was quicker and more forceful.
In a crucial moment, Neymar stepped up.
In the 29th minute, Neymar, showcasing his skill, scored with a low shot from the edge of the penalty area, leveling the score for Brazil.
The stadium erupted in cheers, with Neymar's name echoing through the air as Brazilian fans sang his praises.
Neymar celebrated passionately, arms outstretched, embracing the crowd's adulation.
This goal revitalized Brazil's spirits.
They played with more ease, gradually taking control of the match.
In the 69th minute, Brazilian forward Fred fell in the Croatian penalty area, earning a controversial penalty and a yellow card for Croatian defender Lovren.
Replays showed the call was dubious, with Lovren barely making contact, seemingly more like Fred slipping.
Croatian players protested vehemently, surrounding the Japanese referee Yuichi Nishimura, pressing him to the edge of the field.
Nishimura remained calm despite the pressure, noting Lovren's yellow card without escalating the situation with more cards.
Neymar took the penalty and scored calmly.
The score was now 2:1, with Brazil taking the lead.
This goal marked Neymar's second of the match, making him the second Brazilian player to score twice in a World Cup opener.
Neymar's performance seemed to justify the high hopes Brazilian fans had for him.
If he could lead the team to a World Cup victory, he would undoubtedly become a national hero.
Brazil continued to dominate, and in the 91st minute, Oscar scored again on a counter-attack, sealing a 3:1 victory for Brazil.
In the end, the Samba team (Brazil) made a comeback against Croatia, starting their World Cup campaign with a victory.
If Neymar was the undeniable MVP of this match, then Oscar, who scored a goal and made an assist while frequently delivering threatening passes in the attack, was undoubtedly the second-best performer for Brazil.
It's surprising that such a talented player would later move to the Chinese Super League (CSL) during the prime of his career. The only explanation is probably that the offer was too good to refuse.
After the opening match, the World Cup group stage began in full swing.
On June 13 at 1 PM, the second match of Group A started.
After 90 minutes of fierce competition, Mexico, a traditional powerhouse from Central America, won 1-0 against Cameroon, an African team.
With the first round of matches in Group A concluded, Brazil temporarily tops the group due to goal difference, with a promising outlook for advancing. Mexico follows closely, while Cameroon and Croatia are at the bottom. Their chances of advancing look grim since, judging by the first match, they are likely to struggle against the top two teams.
Brazil's opening win excited the host country's fans.
Online, Brazilian fans were celebrating, with some even optimistically imagining their team lifting the trophy.
The World Cup's schedule isn't very long; for teams aiming to win, they only need to play up to seven matches.
With Brazil having won one match, they only have six more to go.
This optimism, even arrogance, drew criticism online.
Fans of other teams aiming for the championship didn't believe their teams were weaker than Brazil and wouldn't concede the trophy based on one match.
Some neutral fans, like those from China, also couldn't stand the Brazilians' boasting.
"Isn't this too optimistic? It's just the group stage; you can't tell anything yet."
"Exactly. Croatia isn't a traditional powerhouse. Brazil beating them is no big deal."
"The strongest teams in Group A are Brazil and Mexico. If Brazil beats Mexico in the next match, then we can talk about their strength!"
Mexico is a strong World Cup team, having participated 15 times. In the last five World Cups, they made it past the group stage every time. Currently, they are ranked 25th in the world.
Based on their ranking and past performance, Mexico isn't a top-tier team but is strong among the second tier.
However, the gap between second-tier and top-tier teams isn't huge. If Brazil makes mistakes against Mexico, they could lose.
Moreover, both teams have 3 points. If Brazil wants to advance as the top of the group, they must go all out to win against Mexico.
If Brazil can easily beat Mexico, it will prove they are indeed a top-tier team.
If they lose or draw, their championship prospects will be seriously questioned.
After the Group A matches, it was time for Group B.
The first match in Group B was a highlight: the defending champions versus the previous World Cup's runners-up!
This was a rematch of the South Africa World Cup final four years ago and the first time in World Cup history that the finalists from the previous tournament faced each other in the first round of the group stage.
In their ten previous encounters, Spain had a slight advantage with 5 wins, 4 losses, and 1 draw.
Their last meeting was on July 11, 2010, in the South Africa World Cup final.
In that match, the teams were tied in regular time, but Iniesta's goal in extra time secured a 1-0 victory for Spain, earning them the championship.
Four years later, they meet again on the World Cup stage, as if fate had arranged it.
In these four years, much has changed. Compared to their previous lineup, the Netherlands has seen significant personnel changes, with only seven players from the last World Cup participating in this one.
Spain, however, has 16 players who participated in the 2010 World Cup. This makes the Netherlands' lineup younger, while Spain's lineup appears a bit older.
Despite this, Spain was still favored to win.
In pre-match betting, over 60% of fans bet on a Spanish victory, while less than 40% believed the Netherlands would win.
Interestingly, the odds of Spain losing 1-5 to the Netherlands were 700 to 1, offering a massive payoff for anyone willing to take that risk.
Even though it wasn't the opening match, this game attracted as much attention.
Online discussions about the Spain vs. Netherlands match far exceeded those for other games.
At the pre-match press conference, hundreds of journalists from various countries attended.
Faced with such high attention, Dutch coach Van Gaal confidently declared he had found a way to deal with Spain and believed his team would win.
In response, Spanish coach Del Bosque calmly stated:
"In the past four years, countless teams have claimed they found ways to beat us, but in the end, they all failed."
Del Bosque had the confidence to say this, given Spain's remarkable performance in international competitions over the years.
World Cup, Euro Cup, Confederations Cup...
Spain had won trophy after trophy.
Other teams had taken measures against them, but without exception, all had failed.
Van Gaal was not the first to make such claims and certainly wouldn't be the last.
Whether his words would come true depended on how his players performed on the field.
On the afternoon of June 13, the entire Spanish team departed early for the Arena Fonte Nova in Salvador.
When their bus arrived, they coincidentally encountered the Dutch team's bus.
Players from both teams noticed each other's arrival, exchanging glances filled with competitive spirit.
Without any encouragement, the players' fighting spirits were already ignited.
During the pre-match warm-up, there was no interaction between the players, not even among those who were or had been club teammates.
There was no room for personal chats in this setting.
During the coin toss, Casillas chose the kick-off right.
The Netherlands chose the right half as their side.
Both teams wore their away kits for this match.
The Spanish players wore white with red stripes, resembling Real Madrid from afar.
The Dutch wore blue, a bit darker than Chelsea's kit.
Maybe it was because of the uniforms, but the Spanish team appeared particularly imposing today, with players looking taller than usual.
In contrast, the Dutch players seemed smaller, the difference quite noticeable.
This scene made Del Bosque frown; it wasn't an illusion. The Dutch players were indeed shorter on average than the Spaniards.
This suggested that Van Gaal had chosen speedier players, likely making their wing attacks very aggressive.
The match referee was Italian Niccolò Rizzoli.
At precisely 4 PM, the referee's whistle signaled the start of the 2014 World Cup Group B first-round match.
(Chapter ends here)
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