No sleep for Dunga
Afp, London
Brazil coach Dunga has made a flawless start to his reign but management is still giving him sleepless nights. Dunga has the tricky task of putting Brazil back on track after he replaced Carlos Alberto Parreira in the aftermath of the teams premature World Cup exit. The five-times world champions have been at a low ebb since losing their crown when they were beaten by France in the quarterfinals in Germany. But Dunga knows exactly what it takes to succeed at international level after captaining Brazil to World Cup success in 1994 and he is already making his presence felt as coach. His team are unbeaten in his three matches in charge, with Sundays scintillating friendly win against bitter rivals Argentina followed by a comfortable victory against Wales in London on Tuesday. So everything is going well on the pitch but Dunga, in his first coaching job, is still finding it hard to come to terms with the pressures of being responsible for a group of world-renowned stars. He has to constantly be on call to deal with any problems and admitted it keeps him up well into the early hours. He said: "When I played I just had to think about myself. Now I have to think about everyone. "I have to talk to the players and discuss their concerns. Before I would go to bed at 9pm, now I don't get to bed until 3am. "I've learnt you have to be sensible and think before you say something. It's an experience I am discovering more about with each day." Dunga was without some of his more illustrious players, including strikers Ronaldo and Adriano, for his country's week-long stay in London.But, with Brazil not in competitive action again until the Copa America next year, this was the ideal chance for a new generation to stake their claim. Several youngsters have seized the opportunity to show they are more than capable of stepping into the boots of Ronaldo, Roberto Carlos and company. Shakhtar Donetsk midfielder Elano scored twice against Argentina and Real Madrid's Robinho also dazzled in that match. Against Wales it was Fluminense left-back Marcelo's turn to shine as he marked his first start with a buccaneering display that conjured up memories of Roberto Carlos at his finest. Marcelo put the seal on a fine performance with the first goal in his side's 2-0 win and Dunga is confident he can become a key member of the squad. "He is a player of great quality and has very good technique. When we called him up some people thought it was strange," he said. "But we knew his qualities and we were impressed with his attitude in training and during the match. "He still looks like a boy and is always smiling. I asked him if he was ready to play and he just said 'sure, no problem'."Wales boss John Toshack was also happy with the displays of his youngsters despite the defeat, his side's second in four days after their Euro 2008 qualifying loss against the Czech Republic. Teenagers Gareth Bale, Joe Ledley and Lewin Nyatanga all held their own against superior opponents. "I'm sure the youngsters will learn from it," said Toshack. "They weren't overawed and we did create chances. The only problem was, once again, we didn't take those opportunities. "I'm glad we decided to accept this match because there were some interesting things that came out of it. "You have to enjoy it. There is no point being intimidated by the opposition. "These are the games everyone wants to play in. It's harder to get yourself up to play in an English League Two game on a cold night in February."
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