Serbia bests Brazil in extra time, claim U-20 World Cup.

One of the biggest questions in international football has always been when Serbia would put it all together. Lauded heavily for their technical prowess, any praise given towards Serbia was always built in with the caveat that they never perform well in international tournaments. The thought has always been that if they can put everything together then at some point they could take that next step and be a power in world football.

Apparently, Saturday June the 20th was that particular date. No longer are they a team with a couple of nice players and an interesting system. They are a World Cup champion. On Saturday morning Serbia claimed their first ever U-20 World Cup title as an independent nation with their 2-1 victory over Brazil in the World Cup final in Auckland,  New Zealand.

From the start of the match, it was apparent that the contrasting styles of the two would make for a fascinating final. Serbia under coach Veljko Paunovic played a very conservative, patient style that used their advantages on defense to control possession throughout the match. However they were challenged quite frequently by the more free-flowing Brazilian attack.

Brazil had the best opportunity of the first half when defender Jorge made a streaking 40 yard run into the Serbian penalty box. Although his cross found midfielder Danilo in the box but the Braga man was unable to control his shot. Serbia used their significant size advantage to force Brazil’s attack to the periphery of the box.

Serbia meanwhile had their own struggles at finding the back of the net in the first half. The Brazilian midfield did an excellent job at filling the gaps in their defense and keeping Serbia away from goal. Serbia’s best opportunity at gaining the early advantage came shortly before half-time with midfielder Sradan Babic setting up forward Sergej Milinkovic. Milinkovic’s shot was on target but ultimately saved by Brazilian goalkeeper Jean.

The second proved to have more attacking opportunities for both sides. Serbia would capitalize on one of these chances in the 70th minute when midfielder Stanisa Mandic would parry the ball across the mouth of goal and then bury home his shot past Jean. The goal was Mandic’s second goal of the tournament.

Brazil would not stay behind for long . In the 73rd minute Brazilian midfielder Andres Pereira would hit home his second goal of the tournament with a peach of goal past Serbian goalkeeper Predrag Rajkovic. Pereira’s goal was just the third goal that Serbia had allowed during the entire U-20 World Cup.

During extra time both teams seemed to catch their second win. Both Brazilian coach Rogerio Micale and Serbian coach Veljiko Panuovic opted to conserve their substitutes until later in the match and were thus given fresh legs for the thirty minutes of extra time. This bit of strategy nearly paid off for Brazil in the first half of extra time when substitute forward Malcolm found himself with some space in the Serbian penalty. Rajkovic made the save on Malcolm’s shot and subsequent chances were also cleared by the Serbian defense.

With just three minutes remaining Serbia would strike again. Midfielder Nemanja Maksimovic would thread a ball between the Brazilian defense and would find Andrija Zivkovic. With the opportunity of a lifetime the Partizan man would beat Jean and give Serbia the World Cup title.

Despite the loss, Brazilian supporters should be pleased with their team from this tournament. After last year’s humbling defeat against Germany in the senior World Cup, Brazilian soccer has been looking for any sign that things would turn around. While the results were good, what was better from Brazil was the style of play. Not burdened by the doldrum physical style mandated by the Brazilian Football Association, this side played with a flair and passion that has not been seen for a very long time. They did not play with a style that looked like samba, they played samba football.

Although this is Serbia’s first-ever World Cup title as Serbia, they were a part of the Yugoslavian side that won the title back in 1987. Nonetheless this is a tremendous achievement for Serbian soccer. For years, Serbia has been viewed as a great developer of young talent but not necessarily a country that can develop a winning team dynamic. If the Serbs have figured out how to pull together all of their dynamic resources then European teams should be worried.