RIO DE JANEIRO:
Brazilians might have thought that their World Cup nightmare couldn't possibly
get any worse -- and then bitter rivals Argentina reached the final in their
own backyard Wednesday.
Still agonizing over
their traumatic 7-1 semi-final defeat to Germany just 24 hours earlier,
Brazilians will now have to watch Argentina and their superstar Lionel Messi
battle for the trophy in Rio de Janeiro's legendary Maracana Stadium on Sunday.
Many Brazilians rooted
for the Netherlands to beat their South American neighbors in Wednesday's
semi-final. But Argentina saw off the dogged Dutch 4-2 in a penalty shootout
after a 0-0 draw in 120 minutes of stalemate.
“Seeing Argentina in
the final in our home hurts, especially after the Selecao's worst ever defeat,”
said Marcio Carneiro da Silva, 36, a mailman drowning his sorrows with a beer
on the terrace of a Rio de Janeiro restaurant.
His friend Cesar
Augusto, 37, already picked a new team for Sunday.
“Now I'm German,” he
said.
Brazilians noted that
the final will be in the same stadium where Brazil lost the decisive game of
the 1950 tournament to Uruguay, a defeat that traumatized the country.
We are all Germany
“The nightmare
continues,” wrote O Dia newspaper in its online edition.
“In addition to not
being able to dream about a sixth title, Brazilians will have to live with the
real possibility of one of its main rivals triumphing in the ultimate football
temple,” it said.
The sports daily Lance
used a Twitter hashtag for its title, #SomosTodosAlemanha! (We Are All
Germany). Argentines responded on the social media website by repeatedly typing
the number 7, reminding Brazilians of their humiliating defeat.
Argentines were on
cloud nine, singing and chanting at the stadium in Sao Paulo and in bars across
Brazil.
“Reaching the final in
Brazil is the best thing that could happen to us, although I would have
preferred to beat them in the final,” said Miguel Martin, 32, a truck driver
wearing a hat in Argentina's blue and white colors who watched the game at a
public screening in Sao Paulo.
Brazil and Argentina
have battled for football supremacy in South America for decades.
Brazilians flaunt
their record five World Cup titles at Argentines, whose team has won the trophy
twice. Throughout the World Cup, Argentine fans chanted in stadiums that
football legend Diego Maradona was better than Brazilian great Pele.
But the competition
goes beyond the pitch. Argentina was a leading emerging nation in the early
20th century but it was eclipsed by Brazil in economic and political might in
recent decades.
Unbearable nightmare
At the official “Fan
Fest” in Sao Paulo, some Brazilians wore the Dutch team's orange colors,
applauding every time the Netherlands were close to scoring.
Now they have to cope
with the possibility of President Dilma Rousseff handing the trophy to
Argentine captain Messi.
“I can't imagine Dilma
giving the trophy to Argentina at the Maracana. This can't happen,” said Marcos
Raimondi, a 44-year-old economist wearing the official Dutch team jersey.
“It's worse than what
happened yesterday. It's a nightmare. Unbearable.“
Amadeus Marques, a
27-year-old doctor also in Dutch regalia, was equally dumbstruck.
“This is incredible. I
feel the same sensation as yesterday. Since the fourth German goal I was
already hoping that Argentina would not go through and that we would play them
for third place.“
But not all Brazilians
were rooting against their South American peers.
Leonan Freitas, a
33-year-old bank worker, was the only one among a group of friends sipping
beers at a Rio bar who cheered for Argentina.
“Argentina is a
neighbour. I want South America to win,” he said to his friends' disapproval.
“I was more scared of losing the third-place game to Argentina.“
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