Football
Abilash Nalapat 9y

Dunga says Japan victory proves Brazil headed in right direction

Brazil coach Dunga said he was happy with the team's rebuilding process after the Selecao's fourth straight victory under the former defensive midfielder.

Brazil beat Argentina 2-0 in China on Saturday in Beijing while Neymar scored all four goals on Tuesday -- and hit the post once -- in a 4-0 friendly rout of Japan at the National Stadium in Singapore.

"This match proved that we are going the right way," Dunga said. "The Argentina game also proved that our direction is right. They are the World Cup runner-up and had played well offensively. Japan is also a strong team and we are happy that we are going the right way."

Dunga showered praise on Neymar, who has now scored 40 international goals in 58 matches for the Selecao and whose tally as captain stands at five in four matches.

#INSERT type:image caption:Neymar has now scored 40 international goals in 58 matches for Brazil. END#

"Neymar is enjoying his position as captain," Dunga said. "He enjoys playing at the highest level and for him it is as if he is playing with friends. I have told him that the challenge before him is to improve his capabilities.

"We wanted to give him a free role today as he had picked up a cold after the game in Beijing. We substituted all the other offensive players who started with him but did not take him off because we wanted to try out different formations around him,." Dunga said.

When asked if the series of substitutions in the second half had anything to do with the poor condition of the playing surface, Dunga replied in the negative.

"We wanted to try out different players and formations. The substitutions were also intended to convey to all players that they remain in the scheme of things as we plan for the next World Cup."

Japan coach Javier Aguirre also took away positives from the game though his team was trounced by a technically superior team.

Japan, which have now failed to beat Brazil in 11 meetings, didn't win a game at the 2014 World Cup. The team is now focusing on defending its Asian Cup title in January.

"We played well in the first half and created equal chances. However, Neymar's second goal changed the game. We had a young team on the pitch, including seven players from the J League," Aguirre said. "They lost confidence after the second goal. However, they played well in the first half.

"In the context of the preparation for the Asian Cup, this match was successful. Attacking against Brazil is not easy and it is not surprising that Brazil dominated the second half. When we play a big team we get punished for our mistakes and that is what happened tonight. I am not happy that we lost but I can say that our players did their best."

Aguirre praised his forwards Shinji Okazaki and Kakitani Yoichiro for troubling the Brazilian defence with a few challenging headers.

However, when asked whether he has decided on his team for the Asian Cup, he played the cards close to his chest.

"I will wait after all six preparatory friendlies are over," said Aguirre.

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