third straight Confederations Cup title in emphatic fashion, as they
brushed Spainaside 3-0 in the final on Sunday.
The tournament hosts were in supreme form inside a raucous Maracana,
ripping the reigning world and European champions to shreds to end
their 29-match unbeaten run, and claimthe trophy for the fourth time,
alongside their triumphs of 2009, 2005 and 1997.
Fred needed only 90 seconds to open the scoring, before a thumping
second from Neymar moments before the break rounded off an excellent
first halffor Brazil.
The onslaught continued two minutes after the restart when Fred put
another past a shell-shocked Spain, who showedtheir ineptitude at both
ends when Sergio Ramos lashed a penalty wide.
Gerard Pique's 68th minute red card ended any fleeting hopes of a
comeback fromla Roja, as Brazil's win sparked wild celebrations in the
stands and saw Spain lose by three goals in a competitive game for the
first time since 1985.
The fans had the Maracana rocking long before kick-off, and barely two
minutes in, the home side nearly blew the roof off the famous stadium
when they took the lead.
Oscar delivered a ball into the box whichFred, Iker Casillas, Alvaro
Arbeloa and Pique all challenged. A goalmouth scramble ensued and,
despite laying on the turf, the Fluminense man reacted quickest to
poke home.
Fred very nearly set Oscar up for the second within minutes when he
flicked across the box from Neymar's cross, butChelsea's young
playmaker drilled agonisingly wide.
Paulinho then made Casillas work hard to keep the deficit at one with
a cheekylob after robbing Andres Iniesta, with the Spain keeper
backpedalling to get ahand to the at
tempt.
Vicente Del Bosque's side were simply struggling to cope with the
tenacity and energy in Brazil's play, which was matched every step of
the way by the fervour raining down from the stands.
And Arbeloa nearly committed a fatal mistake when he flattened Neymar
on the halfway line, but with the fans baying for blood, only a yellow
card was issued to the defender.
Spain finally showed signs of life when Iniesta's rasping drive forced
Julio Cesar to push around the post, but it was an aberration amid
Brazil's dominance, and Casillas had to stand tall again to stop Fred
from point blank range.
However, it was then the hosts' turn to live on the edge when an
outrageous goal-line clearance from David Luiz denied Pedro a
sure-fire goal after Mata's pass put him one-on-one with Cesar.
But with half-time approaching, Brazil would get their deserved
second. Oscar drew the attention of the defence on the edge of the box
and deftly slipped inNeymar, who unleashed an unstoppable shot into
the back of the net.
And two minutes after the interval, the hosts struck again. Hulk's
fantastic diagonal ball was cleverly dummied by Neymar, leavingFredto
finish coolly into the bottom corner.
Spain were handed a glimmer of hope with a penalty after Marcelo
clumsily challenged substitute Jesus Navas, but Ramos extinguished
that optimism almost instantly with
a wild spot-kick that flew wide.
And they were finished for good when Pique stuck out a leg in vain to
bring down the onrushing Neymar, earning the Barcelona defender a
straight red card as the last man.
It was party time inside the Maracana, with the irrepressible Neymar
driving past defenders with ease, and substituteJo coming close to a
fourth with a powerful strike that was saved by Casillas.
Spain had a few chances to restore a little pride, but Pedro was
denied excellently from close range by Cesar, who did equally well to
push away a curling Villa effort with only minutes remaining.
But it just was notla Roja'snight, with the final whistle signalling
what had been an inevitability for some time as the Brazil
celebrations kicked off in earnest.
The question now is whether theSelecaocan ride this wave of momentum
all the way onto the biggest stage of them all at World Cup 2014.
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