History of the Brazil national football team whose main symbol was midfielder Dunga, forward Careca and three full-backs, the team lacked creativity but made it to the second round. Like in Mexico, Brazil were again confined to one stadium, Juventus' Stadio delle Alpi in Turin. They won all three of their group stage matches against Sweden (2–1), Costa Rica (1–0) and Scotland (1-0), during playing the latter, a hard free-kick taken by Branco hit Scottish midfielder Murdo MacLeod in the head, knocking him out cold. They then had to face Argentina in their second round match. Against a weaker Argentine side, Brazil applied heavy pressure and had
N.E.C. (football club) break, there was a remarkable turnaround. From January 2008, N.E.C. played terrific football and scored many goals. Victory after victory resulted in an excellent eighth place in the Eredivisie. This position was rewarded by participation in the UEFA Cup play-offs. N.E.C. was also superior in the play-offs beating Roda JC Kerkrade, FC Groningen, and NAC Breda. With 31 undefeated matches in a row and with a 6–0 home victory at NAC Breda the highlight, N.E.C. reached European football again. The return match at Breda was a formality, but the team was also victorious. What followed was a great homage to