Wake Forest Athletics
Wake v. Brazil U-20 Game Synopsis
5/20/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Sunday, May 18 -- Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Photos from U-20 match
Preparation for the final competition of the trip began early as the team woke at 5am to begin getting ready to play the Brazil U20's. After a 6 a.m. pre-game meal overlooking the ocean from the scenic Royalty Barra Hotel, the team boarded the bus departing Rio for the mountain town of Teresopolis. As headquarters for the CBF (Governing Body of Brazilian Soccer), Teresopolis sits high in the mountains and while the sun continued to rise in Brazil the team was treated to breathtaking scenery while making the one and a half hour bus trip from Rio. Access to the CBF is very limited and few foreign teams have set foot on the complex responsible for producing some of the games greatest players as well as five world cup championship teams. With great anticipation the team arrived for the scheduled 9 a.m. kick-off only to be met by a security guard who announced that we would not be allowed off the bus until Brazil arrived at the complex. After time on the bus waiting we were granted access to the locker-room facility and were quickly greeted by a picture of each World Cup winning team, 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994 and 2002. After a few pictures it was time to stop being a tourist and get ready for a match with the world's premier U20 side.
Although scheduled for 9 a.m., we were told the game would now kick-off at 9:30 and after warming up we learned the game was pushed back to 10 a.m. So now with 5 a.m. wake-up call, an hour and a half bus ride plus four games under our belts in 8 days and a prolonged warm-up the guys were set to kick with the world's best and thrilled to be doing it.
The first-half started and both teams began to settle in sharing possession before a counter produced our first goal of the match at ten minutes from Austin da Luz. With the 1-0 lead Brazil continued to settle in and put impressive spells together on both sides of the ball with individual talent in every area working to push the speed of the game. We defended well and with the assistance of some outstanding goalkeeping from Akira Fitzgerald, doubled our lead, scoring against the run of play on a Cody Arnoux goal. With the two-goal lead Brazil continued to send numbers forward and scored after being awarded a penalty kick in the 61st minute of action. From there, they continued to find opportunities at our goal but were continually denied by excellent goalkeeping.
However, sixteen minutes later the wear and tear of the trip combined with the class of the Brazilian side produced another goal for the home side. From there we continued to pay for little mistakes and the hosts were quick to capitalize taking their first lead of the game at the 79th minute and capped their scoring in the 80th minute. With the score 4-2 and fatigue fully set in the guys kept working for each other and found a way to stay in the game by scoring a goal off a Sam Cronin free-kick in the 85th minute of play. It was encouraging and a great reflection of the team to give everything for a goal back while running on fumes. As the final whistle blew the team was disappointed but proud of a great effort at the end of a long trip. Due the delight of our players the teams exchanged jerseys after the match and took photos together to remember the experience while Coach Vidovich took time to meet with the Brazil coaching staff to analyze the game.
From Teresopolis it was off to Maracana stadium to watch the Fluminense vs. Nautica match. Following our time at the world famous stadium, we indulged into dinner at a Brazilian Steakhouse. Once at the Churrascaria, the team made former Wake Forest assistant coach Bobby Muus very proud by eating enough food to win any competition. In fact, Michael Lahoud should be awarded a gold medal followed by Marcus Tracy with a silver. On our final day we will be sight seeing in Rio before departing on an evening flight to the states. Check back for a final blog entry sharing some of players' favorite memories as well as other insight into the trip from Coach Vidovich.
Notes:
The Brazil U20's were in camp preparing for a trip to Canada to play the Canadian U20's as well as a first division Polish side.
Jon
