Lazaroni - The coach who 'Europeanised' Brazilian football

Pele, Pele, Pele Kolkata te ele…

As a six-year old I heard this poem, which was an instant hit with the Bengalis after the ‘Football God’ came with the Cosmos team to Calcutta in 1977. In fact, that was a time when Bengalis were still Brazilians.

It is coincidental that today on Pele’s 72nd birthday, I came across former Brazil’s former World Cupper coach Sebastiao Lazaroni, who surprisingly preached a non-Brazilian concept in his homeland when he became the national team coach in 1989.

Those who were used to watching the free-flowing attacking football of Pele, Tostao, Jairzinho and Rivelino in the 70s and, later Zico and Socrates in early 80s, came in for a rude shock. But Lazaroni cared less, and he completely altered the ‘jogo bonito’, much to the chagrin of the fans across the world.

I’m sure that of those who have watched Brazil in the 1990 and 1994 World Cups, many would agree that the South American side was boring because its customary artistry was missing.

Interestingly, during this time in the mid-80s, most of us in India got hooked to the white and blue stripes of Diego Maradona’s Argentina, who however, never compromised with the Latin American artistry.

Though criticised, Lazaroni still evokes a genuine interest, much like the way he did when he ‘Europeanised’ Brazilian football almost two decades back. But still, many don’t know that the 62-year-old drafted a defensive 3-5-2 system and laid the foundations for a Brazilian squad which benefited from this formation when they clinched their fourth world title in 1994 World Cup.

Claudio Taffarel, Jorginho, Aldair, Branco, Mazinho, Dunga, Romario and Bebeto, who reigned in that triumphant team, also formed the core of the 1989 outfit, which won the Copa America under Lazaroni.

However, he was at the receiving end after his team lost to Argentina in the pre-quarterfinal of the 1990 World Cup, leaving Brazilian fans in a state of mourning.

When he took over in 1989, his experiment started with a sweeper system, which was something new to the Samba boys, who always played with a flat back-four. It was a bit of a drudgery, but his coaching philosophy was effective enough to build a side which later won their fourth FIFA World Cup under Carlos Alberto Pereira in 1994.

I like the way he was – daring, calm, controlled, strict, non-emotional and someone who followed his instincts. During his tenure as the Flamengo manager, he benched Socrates, which in turn led to the Brazilian legend’s retirement in early ’87. Lazaroni then famously said about the late player: “Name and fame don’t win you games.”