Confederations Cup 2005 Germany v Brazil
For Brazil and Carlos Albero Parreira it was another job well done and another happy ending but for Jurgen Klinsmann it was the end of a dream, albeit not as fantastic a one as that which culminates in Berlin next year.
At the media post-mortem, Parreira admitted, "We are delighted to be through to the final. It is not easy beating Germany in front of their home crowd. I am proud of my team." He went on to bring bad news to the pretenders to their crown claiming this whole Confederations Cup experience will have helped Brazil retain the World Cup in Germany next summer."It is a fantastic tournament and an outstanding warm-up for next year," he told reporters, mentioning the experience of playing in the stadia, the style of refereeing and travelling between the host cities as all things they will recall come the World Cup, as well as his chance to get a look at one or two fringe players.
Speaking of the clash of playing styles he noted, "It was two different schools, Germany of course more physical with much spirit and Brazil with the ball on the ground and with our skills and Ronaldinho, Adriano, Gilberto and everybody. We showed our technique and our skill but more than this, our courage to face them here. It was almost a World Cup for them so I think we deserved it."
Klinsmann on the other hand was less effusive, having steered his side to defeat, but could still raise a smile or two during the conference. "Obviously we are disappointed," he confessed, "but overall we are satisfied with the team, the performances and the account that we have given of ourselves." Praising his opponents' quality with respect to Germany's, he continued, "Brazil are a genuinely top team and always a dangerous team. They recognise when it is time to hit the gas and shift up two gears. I believe we have been on the right path for the past ten months but we still have a lot to do and we want to be closer to the top in football."
Finally, he paid tribute to the support which has really got behind Germany and made this the biggest Confederations Cup stages so far: "I would like to praise the wonderful crowd here in Nuremberg," he said. "It is just sad we could not make it to the final. But we are looking forward to the fantastic crowd in Leipzig. We have a duty to give everything one last time in that match before we go on a well-earned holiday. We have a little time to ourselves now to make sure we do even better next year, hopefully."
© Soccerphile.com