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Brazil media demands 'urgent' Selecao overhaul

(Xinhua) Updated: 2014-07-13 15:57

BRASILIA -- Brazil's media poured fresh scorn on the Selecao following their 3-0 loss to the Netherlands in the battle for the World Cup third place.

The defeat came just four days after Luiz Felipe Scolari's team was routed 7-1 by Germany, a result that eliminated the hosts from the tournament.

"The Brazilian team had no system and no idea," wrote renowned football scribe Juca Kfouri in the Folha de S.Paulo.

The Estado de S.Paulo newspaper published a picture of Brazil's players with their hands on their hips and forlorn expressions. Below it a caption read: "After 10 goals in two games, Brazilians are left in shock."

Rio de Janeiro's O Globo said Brazil's shame had been amplified by a series of "unwanted records".

Among them was a new mark for goals conceded during a World Cup (14) and Brazil's biggest losing margin in a World Cup match (against Germany).

"To make matters worse Germany striker Mirsoslav Klose broke Ronaldo's World Cup scoring record with his goal against Brazil," the newspaper added.

Veteran television commentator Galvao Bueno called for an "urgent transformation" of the Brazil team.

"The best way to change would be to look to Germany for inspiration," Bueno said on the Globo network, citing an overhaul of the country's football structure in the early 2000s.

"They didn't have any shame in starting again from zero and that hard work has now brought them back to the top," he added.

Former Selecao coach and 1994 World Cup-winning captain Dunga told FIFA.com that Brazil needed to be less reliant on individual talent and focus more on team strategy.

"[We] have to understand that a national team is not a collection of the best players but the players who fit in with the kind of football you're trying to play," Dunga said.

"There isn't that much difference between sides any more. The problem is that here in Brazil we think that exceptionally talented players don't have any kind of tactical function to perform. It's that kind of mentality that we need to change."

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