Tweet
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top><SPAN class=art-title2>Fearless Dunga hits the campaign trail</SPAN> <TABLE cellSpacing=5 cellPadding=5 width=150 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>
</TD></TR><TR class=paddingall><TD vAlign=top>
<SPAN class=textblack11px_normal>Dunga participated in the coaches symposium in Berlin during the month of September and spoke exclusively to FIFA.com.
</SPAN><SPAN class=textblack11px_bold>(FIFA.com)</SPAN> </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10px; FONT-FAMILY: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif">(FIFA.com)</SPAN> <SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10px; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">25 Oct 2006</SPAN>
<SPAN class=art-text>As the countdown to Sunday's presidential election begins in earnest, manifestos, opinion polls and ballot boxes seem to be the only topics of conversation on the streets of Brazil. In this football-mad country, however, the fortunes of the Selecao are never far off the top of the agenda, particularly in the wake of a lacklustre campaign at Germany 2006 and the subsequent appointment of Dunga, Brazil's FIFA World Cup winning captain at USA 1994, as national coach.
On the eve of his 43rd birthday, the country's new football supremo found time in his busy schedule to share his first impressions of the job with FIFA.com and reiterated the views of his predecessor Carlos Parreira: "In Brazil it's harder to be the national coach than the president."
The epitome of determination, dedication and sacrifice during a distinguished playing career, Dunga is acutely aware of the responsibilities he took on when accepting the job back in July. "If the president doesn't want to speak, he doesn't speak. If the president makes a mistake, 200 people complain. But if I make a mistake, I have 180 million people on my back! The same thing happens whenever we make a change. He can sack a minister and no one says anything, but if I take a player off …" he explains with a laugh.
Joking apart, the man who was idolised for his no-nonsense style on the field of play appears to be taking the pressures of management in his stride. "It's tremendously satisfying to be Brazil coach and a positive experience in virtually every respect, even the pressure that's on you," he comments. "People are very critical and they think they have a right to say whatever they want. There are a lot of interests at stake and you have to be tough to handle the pressure. It's a nice feeling though."
The former Internacional man has wasted little time in stamping his authority on the job, bringing in new faces at the expense of established stars such as Adriano and Ronaldo and even relegating Ronaldinho to the substitute's bench. The results speak for themselves: three wins and a draw including a resounding 3-0 win over neighbours Argentina.
The ex-midfield enforcer certainly seems pleased with his first few months in office: "We've managed to create a good impression so far. The players responded well at a very special time for all of us. We brought in some new players and there were a few who were at the World Cup, but we treat everyone the same. Anyone who's performing well for their club is in with a chance."<TABLE id=IMGTAB height=150 cellSpacing=3 cellPadding=0 width=150 align=left summary="" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>
</TD></TR><TR id=TRCAP><TD vAlign=bottom align=left><SPAN class=textblack11px_normal>Dunga chats to Luis Felipe Scolari over drinks in Berlin.</SPAN></TD></TR><TR id=TRSOURCE><TD align=left><SPAN class=textblack11px_bold>(FIFA.com)</SPAN></TD></TR><TR id=TRAUTHOR><TD align=left><SPAN class=textblack11px_bold></SPAN></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
A new breed
The football world has witnessed something of a revolution in recent years with a number of famous names making seamless transitions into
</TD></TR><TR class=paddingall><TD vAlign=top>
<SPAN class=textblack11px_normal>Dunga participated in the coaches symposium in Berlin during the month of September and spoke exclusively to FIFA.com.</SPAN><SPAN class=textblack11px_bold>(FIFA.com)</SPAN> </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
<SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10px; FONT-FAMILY: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif">(FIFA.com)</SPAN> <SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10px; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">25 Oct 2006</SPAN>
<SPAN class=art-text>As the countdown to Sunday's presidential election begins in earnest, manifestos, opinion polls and ballot boxes seem to be the only topics of conversation on the streets of Brazil. In this football-mad country, however, the fortunes of the Selecao are never far off the top of the agenda, particularly in the wake of a lacklustre campaign at Germany 2006 and the subsequent appointment of Dunga, Brazil's FIFA World Cup winning captain at USA 1994, as national coach.
On the eve of his 43rd birthday, the country's new football supremo found time in his busy schedule to share his first impressions of the job with FIFA.com and reiterated the views of his predecessor Carlos Parreira: "In Brazil it's harder to be the national coach than the president."
The epitome of determination, dedication and sacrifice during a distinguished playing career, Dunga is acutely aware of the responsibilities he took on when accepting the job back in July. "If the president doesn't want to speak, he doesn't speak. If the president makes a mistake, 200 people complain. But if I make a mistake, I have 180 million people on my back! The same thing happens whenever we make a change. He can sack a minister and no one says anything, but if I take a player off …" he explains with a laugh.
Joking apart, the man who was idolised for his no-nonsense style on the field of play appears to be taking the pressures of management in his stride. "It's tremendously satisfying to be Brazil coach and a positive experience in virtually every respect, even the pressure that's on you," he comments. "People are very critical and they think they have a right to say whatever they want. There are a lot of interests at stake and you have to be tough to handle the pressure. It's a nice feeling though."
The former Internacional man has wasted little time in stamping his authority on the job, bringing in new faces at the expense of established stars such as Adriano and Ronaldo and even relegating Ronaldinho to the substitute's bench. The results speak for themselves: three wins and a draw including a resounding 3-0 win over neighbours Argentina.
The ex-midfield enforcer certainly seems pleased with his first few months in office: "We've managed to create a good impression so far. The players responded well at a very special time for all of us. We brought in some new players and there were a few who were at the World Cup, but we treat everyone the same. Anyone who's performing well for their club is in with a chance."<TABLE id=IMGTAB height=150 cellSpacing=3 cellPadding=0 width=150 align=left summary="" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>
</TD></TR><TR id=TRCAP><TD vAlign=bottom align=left><SPAN class=textblack11px_normal>Dunga chats to Luis Felipe Scolari over drinks in Berlin.</SPAN></TD></TR><TR id=TRSOURCE><TD align=left><SPAN class=textblack11px_bold>(FIFA.com)</SPAN></TD></TR><TR id=TRAUTHOR><TD align=left><SPAN class=textblack11px_bold></SPAN></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>A new breed
The football world has witnessed something of a revolution in recent years with a number of famous names making seamless transitions into