Friday, January 10, 2025
The Professor in Spite of Himself, Part 4
Just as Brazil's nightmare against Uruguay in 1950 made the conquest of the World Cup an obsession, their early exit from the 1966 tournament in England made them determined to leave nothing to chance when it came to preparation for 1970.
A military junta was in charge of the country, and preparations for the forthcoming World Cup in Mexico took on rather a military flavour. The brilliant eccentric who had steered Brazil through the qualifying stages, Joao Saldanha, was jettisoned in favour of a more politically reliable manager, the austere former national team star Mario Zagallo. And in charge of preparing the team physically was Admildo Chirol, a trainer at the military school in Rio and a former mentor to the young Carlos Alberto Parreira. When Chirol encountered Parreira in Germany after the latter's stint in charge of Ghana and offered him the chance to be part of the preparations for Mexico, Parreira was only too happy to accept the challenge.
Pelé and co. had an astonishing four months (!) to prepare for the event. Along with Chirol, the physical preparation team featured another army man, Claudio Coutinho, who had extensive contacts in the U.S. military and even NASA. Coutinho had been impressed by the so-called Cooper Test (the predecessor of the now-ubiquitous "beep test"), and introduced it to the 1970 players. Ensconced in a Jesuit retreat, the players were able to build up their stamina in almost monastic isolation. They would be similarly shielded from press, fans and assorted troublemakers in Mexico as well - planning for Brazil's return to the summit of world football was immaculate.
Brazil's ultimate victory in 1970 has taken on a mythic character in the years since, and the artistry of the great players in the side - Pelé, Tostao, Jairzinho, Rivelino, Gerson and the rest - has been justly celebrated. But the intense physical preparation played a very important role as well. It says something about their stamina in the heat and altitude of Mexico that only two of the seven goals they conceded at the event were scored in the second half (while they scored 12 of their 19 goals after the interval). Rivelino recalled later that, unlike in previous events, he couldn't recall a single time when he had to get water from the touchline.
And for Carlos Alberto Parreira, it was the event which confirmed his desire to become a fully-fledged football coach.
Much of this was down to the admiration he conceived for Zagallo, who became a lifelong friend and a priceless adviser at the side when Parreira went on to win a World Cup himself in 1994. He always asserted later that he received his real tactical education from Zagallo; this was, after all, the man who had practically invented the 4-3-3 as a player, introducing the "withdrawn winger" role which was so influential throughout the world.
Significantly, Parreira's role in 1970 went slightly beyond mere physical preparation. He was detailed to look for potential weaknesses in Brazil's opponents, and his key contribution in this regard was an astute analysis of Italy's tactics. Parreira suggested that Jairzinho, on the right wing, should pull his marker Giacinto Facchetti over to the Brazilian left, to make room for a run up from the back by the other Carlos Alberto, Brazil's right-back and captain.
Zagallo liked the idea and explained it to the team prior to the game. And, famously, the tactic worked to perfection on the occasion of Brazil's famous fourth goal in the final.
Carlos Alberto Parreira's subsequent career is well-known. Taking five teams to the World Cup finals (two of them for the first time), the 1994 triumph, and all the accolades that followed. But the first steps that took him from untried physical preparer to football professor-in-waiting were, perhaps, the most important ones.
