Group D Preview: Brazil

Brazil (#3)
Region: Conmebol
Coach: Kleiton Lima
How They Qualified: Won the Campeonato Sudamericano.
Prior Cups:
2007: 2nd Place
2003: Lost in Quarterfinals
1999: 3rd Place
1995: Group Stage
1991: Group Stage
Returnees from 2007 WWC: (13) Andreia, Barbara, Thais (GK), Aline, Daiane, Renata Costa, Rosana, Elaine, Ester, Formiga, Marta, Cristiane, Grazielle.

Roster (Average Age: 26.26)

Name	Pos	Club	Age	Caps/Goals
Andreia	GK	Santos	33	46/0
Barbara	GK	Foz Cataratas	22	18/2
Thais	GK	Bangu	28	12/0
Aline	DF	Santos	28	23/4
Daiane	DF	Botucatu	28	12/3
Elaine	DF	Tyreso	28	18/4
Erika	DF	Santos	23	14/8
Fabiana	DF	Santos	21	18/4
Maurine	DF	WNY Flash	25	44/11
Renata Costa	DF	None	24	63/27
Rosana	DF	Centro Olimpico	28	32/6
Roseane	DF	Bangu	25	12/0
Beatriz	MF	Bangu	17	2/0
Ester	MF	Santos	28	26/2
Formiga	MF	None	33	46/12
Francielle	MF	Sao Jose	21	15/5
Cristiane	FW	Santos	26	56/41
Daniele	FW	Vasco da Gama	28	12/3
Grazielle	FW	America	30	18/5
Marta	FW	WNY Flash	25	69/76
Thais Guedes	FW	Bangu	18	5/0

Recent Matches:

Date	Opponent	Competition	Result
5/14/11	Chile	Friendly	W 3-0
12/19/10	Canada	Sao Paulo	T 2-2
12/15/10	Canada	Sao Paulo	T 0-0
12/12/10	Holland	Sao Paulo	W 3-2
12/9/10	Mexico	Sao Paulo	W 3-0
11/21/10	Chile	Campeonato Sudamericano	W 3-1
11/19/10	Colombia	Campeonato Sudamericano	W 5-0
11/17/10	Argentina	Campeonato Sudamericano	W 4-0
11/13/10	Paraguay	Campeonato Sudamericano	W 3-0
11/11/10	Colombia	Campeonato Sudamericano	W 2-1
11/7/10	Uruguay	Campeonato Sudamericano	W 4-0
11/5/10	Venezuela	Campeonato Sudamericano	W 4-0

There is the old saying about always the bridesmaid, but never the bride. Well, if you look at the results for Brazil in major tournaments over the past seven years, you get the feeling that that must be just how Brazil feels. They finished second to Germany in the 2007 World Cup and second the United States at both the 2004 and 2008 Olympics.

Brazil has not lost a match in a good long while, but part of that is because they play so few. They’ve played only 12 matches since the beginning of 2010, seven of which were qualifying matches and four of which were in a tournament played in Brazil. Their last loss was in the spring of 2009 when they ventured into Europe for a two game trip against Germany and Sweden. They tied Germany and lost to Sweden in those two matches. It’s almost as if the Brazilians go dormant in between major tournaments.

As expected, the Brazilians swept through their qualifying matches with little trouble, taking home seven victories by a combined margin of 25-2. And also as might be expected, Marta and Cristiane did the bulk of the scoring, with nine goals and eight goals respectively.

Their next tournament was the Cidade de Sao Paulo in which they went unbeaten, but did not win the tournament. They could only manage two ties against a strong Canadian team, in spite of having a player advantage for much of the second half of the final. They have played a single friendly since against Chile.

They return 13 players from their 2007 World Cup team, what was at the time, a very young roster. They have since matured and now many of the players are in their prime. Nine of these players have played in the WPS and several have played in the Swedish Damallsvenskan.

Of course, you can’t talk about Brazil without talking about their best player and the best player in the world for five years straight, Marta. It isn’t enough that she is very talented, but she is also determined and fast as well. She followed up her nine goal performance in qualifying by scoring another six goals in four matches in Sao Paulo. And if you think you can just concentrate on stopping her, think again, because that is much easier said than done.

The second big gun on the offensive end is Marta’s forward running mate, Cristiane. She is a great goal scorer in her own right. She has been plagued by nagging injuries on and off over the past few years.

In the middle of the field, it is the ageless Formiga that organizes the attack. A very intelligent player, she distributes well and plays solid defense. She is the soul of this Brazilian team.

Aline Pellegrino and Renata Costa are steady defenders in the back. Aline is the captain of the team. They are joined by Rosana and Erika on defense. Rosana is always an offensive threat as well. The veteran Andreia will probably be in goal for the Brazilians.

The Brazilians are always a fun team to watch, but one thing you have to wonder about this team is if they sometimes depend too much on Marta and Cristiane’s scoring. In the last World Cup, Brazil scored 17 goals with those two getting 12 goals between them. Yet in the final, Germany was able to shut them down and shut them out.

Brazil should have very little trouble getting out of Group D and into the quarterfinals. Barring any upsets, they should get another shot at Germany or the United States or possibly both. Can this be the year that they win it all?

Note: Some information for this article was obtained from www.fifa.com and www.cbf.com.br.

Chicago Red Stars 2010 - Enigmatic Stars Go Young

Coach: Emma Hayes
2009 Record: 5-10-5 (6th place)
Postseason: Out of the playoffs.

Returnees (10): Karen Carney, Cristiane, Marian Dalmy, Ifeoma Dieke, Brittany Klein, Kate Markgraf, Ella Masar, Megan Rapinoe, Natalie Spilger, Lydia Vandenbergh.
Draft Choices (5): Whitney Engen, Jessica McDonald, Kelsey Davis, Michelle Weissenhofer, Jackie Santacaterina.
LA Dispersal Draft (1): Casey Nogueira.
International Signings ( 3): Kosovare Asllani, Katie Chapman, Formiga.
Free Agents (1): Julianne Sitch.
Trades (1): Jillian Loyden.

Of all WPS teams last season, the Red Stars were the one team I couldn’t figure out. They just looked like they should have been better. How can a team with Cristiane, Rapinoe, Tarpley, Carney, Lloyd, and Masar have trouble scoring? Twice this team went nearly 400 minutes without scoring a goal and they were shut out 11 times.

Chicago seems to be going to a youth movement, with 5 draft picks plus Casey Nogueira from the dispersal draft and international signee Kosovare Asllani joining the Red Stars. The exceptions were the signings of former Gold Pride midfielder Formiga and English international Katie Chapman. Chicago will also welcome back Kate Markgraf, who missed all of last season. With Lloyd and Tarpley gone, it means that Chicago is the only team that never had their 3 USWNT allocations on the field at the same time.

Goalkeeping-The Red Stars made a bold move prior to the January draft, trading USWNT player Lindsay Tarpley to Saint Louis for Jillian Loyden. Loyden’s stock has risen rapidly over the past 12 months. First, she won the backup role to Hope Solo in Saint Louis and shut out 2 of 3 opponents she faced in 2009. Then, she ventured to Australia where she won the W-League Goalkeeper of the Year. Since then, she has made the US National Team as a backup. To solidify the goalkeeper position, Chicago drafted Kelsey Davis out of the University of Portland. Davis has experience on US junior teams and should provide the Red Stars with a quality backup. At press time, the Red Stars didn't have a developmental keeper.

Defenders- The Red Stars started 2009 as one of the best defensive teams in WPS, shutting out 3 of their first 4 opponents. However, they didn’t post a shutout in the 2nd half of the season and this is certainly one area that needed improvement. The return of Kate Markgraf should go a long way in doing that. Markgraf, a USWNT veteran, missed the entire ’09 season. She is a solid, experienced defender who will anchor Chicago’s back line.

The second key addition is Whitney Engen. Engen was considered to be the top defender in college soccer last fall at UNC. The Red Stars also return Marian Dalmy, Ifeoma Dieke, and Natalie Spilger. Dalmy is a tall outside back who has some experience on the US National Team. Dieke has good speed and plays internationally for Scotland. Stanford grad Spilger played well last season in 13 starts. The Red Stars also return developmental back, Lydia Vandenbergh, who bolstered her playing experience with a stint in the Aussie W-League last fall. The additions of Markgraf and Engen should make this a top notch defensive group.

Midfielders-If you look at Chicago’s 2009 midfield group, there appeared to be a lot of talent, but it rarely translated into goals. Of that group, Carli Lloyd is no longer with the Red Stars. The returnees are Karen Carney, Megan Rapinoe, and Brittany Klein. Klein was finally recognized for her strong play, being named to the '09 all-star team. Certainly one of the smallest midfielders in the league, Klein’s not afraid to mix it up and she always has an impressive work rate. Carney and Rapinoe may be two of the most talented young wing players in the world, but 2009 saw limited output for the duo, a combined 4 goals and 4 assists. Although Carney is recovering from injury, expect to see a lot better results from the two this season. Both are very good 1 v. 1 players that can break down opposing defenses.

The two major additions in the midfield both come from the international ranks. Chicago added English international Katie Chapman and former Gold Pride midfielder Formiga. The Brazilian star struggled through a 2009 season which saw her hobbled by injuries toward the end of the season and missing the all-star game. She still has the ability to make players around her better and I expect her to rebound with a strong 2010 season, once her visa problems are solved. Chapman has 76 caps for the English National Team and just scored the game winner in a match against Spain. Chicago area native Julianne Sitch and Illinois alum Jackie Santacaterina will provide depth here as well as on the back line.

Forwards-The Red Stars signed 20-year old striker, Kosovare Asllani, from Sweden to improve Chicago’s offensive output. Asllani scored 12 goals for Linköpings last season and she will be counted on to do more of the same with the Red Stars. Her forward running mates will be Cristiane, who scored 7 goals last season (and was the only Red Star to score between April 25 and July 1) and Ella Masar who spent most of ’09 as a reserve, adding two assists.

A trio of forwards from the college ranks will provide depth. Casey Nogueira had a knack for scoring clutch goals for North Carolina and hopes to be a spark for the Red Stars. Another former UNC player, Jessica McDonald, was Chicago’s 2nd round selection. Together, Nogueira and McDonald were UNC’s top two goal scorers last fall. Another Chicago area native, Michelle Weissenhofer of Naperville and Notre Dame, adds further depth at forward.

Summary-Certainly, the Red Stars would like to forget last season. The back line was troubled with injuries, the offense was anemic, they suffered two red cards, and they finished 6th. The injection of young talent, with a sprinkling of older veterans could be a move in the right direction, although the team will certainly miss a respected veteran in Lindsay Tarpley.

If everyone plays to their potential and the team gels, this could be a very good team. There is a lot of room for improvement over last year’s squad. The Red Stars will be tested very quickly as they open on the road against defending WPS Champions Sky Blue FC and their former teammate, Carli Lloyd.

Red Stars Sign Formiga

The Chicago Red Stars have completed the international portion of their roster, adding Brazilian midfielder Formiga. She is a veteran of three World Cups and four Olympics.

Last season, Formiga was a member of FC Gold Pride, playing in 16 matches for the Bay Area side. In September, FCGP waived the 2010 option on her, making her a free agent. She joins Karen Carney, Katie Chapman, Kosovare Asllani, and Cristiane as Chicago's international players. Tomorrow is her 32nd birthday.

WPS Teams Announce Player Transactions

With September 30 being a deadline to exercise options or re-sign players for the 2010 season, all WPS teams released lists of which players would be under contract for 2010 and which players would become free agents.

There are several big names among those who are now free agents. Among them, 15 of the 34 international players from the 2009 season and several US National Team players. Notable among the international players who became free agents are WPS All-Stars Formiga and Cristiane. Among the US National Team players who will be free agents are Carli Lloyd, Leslie Osborne, Aly Wagner, and Heather Mitts. This could make for a very interesting offseason for the young league.

A complete list of transactions can be found at the WPS website.