I think the record is pretty straight on the fact that I am not a Brazilian supporter. I don’t hate them. They are just not my first team. Yet, ever since the 29th minute of last night’s game, I have been in reeling in disbelief. I don’t think one even has to be a football fan, let alone a Selecao faithful, to grasp that something truly monumental happened at Belo Horizonte yesterday, and completely be bumfuzzled as to how something so extraordinary could come to pass. I literally have not thought about anything else the last 20 odd hours with anything more than the most passing of concerns. Not Messi, not Robben, not Van Gaal, not Liverpool, not the terrible Red Devils, not even Shakib. I am still in utter and complete shock.
Unlike most others, being a Liverpool supporter I have developed a fairly strong coping mechanism for dealing with footballing shock. One method is to console others who are in a greater state of despair and disbelief than myself. During the EPL season I counsel Everton and Arsenal fans. Now I will provide words of succor to the Selecao fans.
I promised in a previous article that I would not be making any more lists, but such is my state of mind, I cannot possibly expected to compose cogent paragraphs. So here is my list of reasons why last night is not as bad as it looks.
1. Jose Mourinho, Argentine fans, Manchester United supporters. In the last twenty-four hours, they have all expressed their sympathies towards the Brazilians. It takes a special and possibly unique moment in history for all these three parties to be nice at the same time. When you can elicit magnanimity of such rarity, you must have done something special. Suspicion of crocodile tears aside, Brazil fans should feel very proud of their team’s achievement. They could win the peace prize next year.
2. The third place match. For as long as I have been watching the World Cup, this has been the most irrelevant and depressing fixture. Yet Brazil has gone fifty percent of the way towards making it the most important game in footballing history. By the time you read this, Argentina will have stepped up to complete the job initiated by their archrivals. We can only hope. This will also be the perfect opportunity for downtrodden nations like us to show a nice big middle finger to the imperialist governing body of football, and make a cup of our own. Bangladesh should declare that whoever wins the third place match is the real champion.
3. Diego Maradona. Regardless of what fate has in store for La Albicelestes, last night’s result will have provided some level of vindication for Maradona’s actions since he retired from the game. Even the most ardent Brazilian fans have great if grudging admiration for Diego. To see him getting something back in return for wrecking his own life must be a small yet tender mercy.
4. Beautiful Bangladesh. As the rains beat down incessantly, much to the consternation of directors trying to shoot outdoor sequences for Eid plays, the country becomes an increasingly glorious canvas of green. We are surrounded by massive range of hues, all wonderful, except one. The dull shade of cheap Brazilian flags. In a visit to the countryside today, I realized that most if not all Brazil banners have been taken down. Our country can go back to its verdant grandeur. Surely a resplendent nation is worth more than any football team.
I must add another point before the end. As the Brazilians were getting decimated last night, I noticed that social media was full of comments about the team getting raped. I recognize that sporting semantics are problematic. After all, how often do we gleefully declare that our opposition has been brutally murdered? Still the invocation of rape disturbs me. I can only imagine that fans and players alike must be relieved that the Selecao only lost a game, and were not subjected to the cruel end that visits so many women and men on an hourly basis around the world.
