Confederations Cup Highlights Match of the Day

Champions. Oh, what a great goal, Herne nan Des for Mexico. Mata. The

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football on a Saturday night for too long, could we? We have the

Confederations Cup on the BBC. Eight teams, comprised of each continent's

champions, plus the host country and the World Cup winners are split into

two groups in a tournament that serves the purpose as a dress

rehearsal for the World Cup itself in one years' time. Tonight, we will

see the home nation, Brazil, against the Asian champions, Japan. Alan

Shearer and Robbie Savage are with me. To Brasilia then. Sepp Blatter

gave a pre-match speech to the crowd, we will swerve that and go

straight to the action with Martin Keown and Steve Wilson.

COMMENTATOR: Brazil have played everywhere from Derby to Abdou Dhabi

since the last World Cup. They have been between tournaments for a long

time now. 00 days Cincinnati a shoot-out defeat to Paraguay. The

Confederations Cup may not be the big tournament, that kicks off June

12 2th next year, but it's a big tournament. It's Brazil on Brazilian

soil, what more can anybody ask for. Scolari announced his team last

night. He kept training open to the media. He invited in the local fire

media. He invited in the local fire brigade in auto to watch. This may

not be Brazil's ever best squad. Think about who hasn't made it.

Japan are the only other side to be certain of their place in the World

Cup next summer. They qualified 10 days ago against Australia. There is

one change to that starting 11: this now is getting serious for next

COMMENTATOR: Brazil have lost one competitive international on home

soil since 1963. That defeat against Peru was way back in 75. That is one

competitive home defeat in 50 years. That is what the opposition are up

against in this Confederations Cup and the World Cup next year. It's

what Japan are up against today, but also that is the history, that is

the legend of Brazil that this current crop are up against as well.

That is some pressure. Brazil, from left to right, in the first half.

Japan, kick kicking towards Julio Cesar. If you think about that stat

it's mind-boggling. One competitive home defeat in 50 years. Wow! It's

about handling the expectations for this group of players. Scolari

trying to keep it calm throughout the press conferences. Now, when it

matters you have to turn it on as a arena. A very good atmosphere inside

it as well. Her's Chelsea's Oscar. Neymar off chasing this. He has got

there. Neymar. The block came in. introduction from Neymar. That's

fantastic. Boy, when it came to him, did he produce. All this week they

have been saying he's been on a goal drought. That has ended, 1-0.

watched him in training taking free-kicks. Unbelievable. The form

he has in, we only just started the game. He has risen to the challenge.

Look at this. Wow. I mean he is picking out the top right hand

corner there. A great strike, sweet as you like. Confident player. At

the top of his game. My first thought was, Fred might have used

his upper arm. I don't think that was the case. It was a sensational

strike from Neymar. Cometh the hour, cometh the man. The pressure was on.

What a fantastic goal to start this area, David Luiz there getting too

tight. Honda showing his quality. Doesn't need to get that tight.

Honda over the free-kick. Yoshida is lurk lurking. Okazaki is behind him.

Honda went for the drive. Julio Cesar seemed to be slightly

wrong-footed. It almost caught him out that. It a hell of a distant

out. You would think the keeper would deal with that comfortably. A

bounce in front. Palmed it away. No problem. Gustavo strong in

possession. Japan working hard to close them down. That is Endo, No 7,

a player that I'm a fan of. Slightly heavy touch from Paulinho. Paulinho

in midfield, gas Gustavo, they look wooden. Players you would have seen

in the past. They are not as technically advance as previous

teams maybe. They have the function to drop back into the backline.

witnessed the big debate about Paulinho in Scolari's press

conference yesterday. Tottenham are looking at him, by the way, he plays

for his club, Corinthians, much further up the pitch than he plays

for Brazil. Here he is. Oscar has lost it to Honda. Honda's little

touch. This is good. Kagawa has support to his right hand side. It

fed into Takahashi. At the back post! Good play. Finish didn't quite

match it. It's a shame about the finish. It is a great break. It

shows you what they are capable of. A difficult ball to deal with.

Arrives late. He should do better from Neymar. Marcelo. Fred making

the run in the middle four, others are arriving. Here is Hull. Decent

first touch. Couldn't find Paulinho. A bit wide there with the attempted

goal. Trying to pick somebody out. Unlucky there. A wild shot from

Alves. It shows you, both full-backs, Marcelo getting down the

left. He is a real threat. Alves on the right, they play like wingers

Good play from Endo finding Honda on the edge. On to his weaker right

foot. The keerp makes a meal of it though. Just before the training

session there was a huddle around the World Cup winning captain, he

told them all about the journey that they are embarking on over the next

well, almost an own-goal. Paulinho couldn't quite reach it. Japan have

managed to smother and smuggle it away somehow and lash it up upfield

hoping that Kiyotake will chase it. How do you think Oscar did in his

first season in English football? see him as being an important player

for Chelsea. Better as the season went on. He gave it away there.

Silva has won it back for Brazil. Hulk, Fred, down the middle. Honda,

had an unbelievable schedule, Oscar, over the last couple of years.

Under-20 World Cup in 2011, Olympics last summer, playing for Chelsea,

Confederations Cup this summer, Trying to whip a cross in. It was

was way off target. But it shows you they have quality in that final

power, wrong side of the post. He has come alive. He is about power,

side wanted to give a free kick. Now he does give Brazil a free kick.

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what looks like cramp... Oh, no, it's not. I know what that is!

throw-in, put out of play by the Premier League am actually,

joining from Dutch football. That is 2-0. They scored in the third minute

of the first half and have scored in the third minute of the second half.

Paulinho for Brazil, 2-0. Absolutely devastating. They were listening to

the chaps at half-time about living with purpose. This time it's Alves

on the right-hand side. Paulinho, great quality at the end of it.

We've talked about him being more defensively minded these days, but

look what he can do when he's in the the back of the net. You talked

about them starting pulley in the goal kick. They almost hit back

straightaway, Martin. Marcelo has got to get tight. There's no

throw-in. The pace has slackened. The humidity here. They are just

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Didn't quite have the angle and he was in an side either. A good line

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from the Japanese. They didn't go that was a free kick all day long,

and this was within range as well. Honda might fancy this. Endo is

clean sheet wouldn't do him any back. That's a good save by Cesar.

Ryoichi Maeda with the drive. great technique, keeps it down.

Cesar looking a quality keeper at last. He's better when it's more

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Napa tome oh coming back there. -- stadium and what will happen to them

when the tour has finished. This is very much the centre of that

debate, the stadium in Brasilia, the most expensive for the World Cup.

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Neymar is coming off. That's not a moment. I thought that was heading

in the corner but it was a bit of an optical illusion. He should hold the

Brazil with Atletico Mineiro, who hadn't been selected for any

Brazilian representative side since the Beijing Olympics before his

show what he could do, but he showed headlines. That's a nice memento, if

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They will probably settle for the by Thiago Silva. Here is Oscar, one

delightful goal tucked away by Jo. His first ever goal for Brazil.

Brilliant counter attack, fantastic passing to Jo. He did the rest. It

was worth waiting for. 3-0. Oscar in this goal, the way he runs with this

ball, injection of pace. He comes inside and look at the weight of

pass. On comes Jo. It is a gift for him. Oscar's delivery, on the run,

delivers the weight of pass and Jo nowhere near the Brazilian national

side for years. Out of the blue, one injury, he's in the squad, a

substitution, he's on the pitch. An Oscar pass, he's in the goals.

important thing is you are a centre forward, you come off the bench and

make a name for yourself. He hasn't done himself any harm with that one.

The final whistle goes. Scolari shows no great emotion but he will

be very satisfied will stop what Neymar did after three minutes was

worth coming for alone. The other two goals weren't too bad either.

Paulinho and Jo. The 2013 Confederations Cup has kicked off in

it be a relief for those players to play competitive international

football? It a massive relief for football? It a massive relief for

them. They had their match head on tonight. They had their competitive

head on for the first time in two years it was a game that had an edge

to it. What I've seen of Brazil, over the last couple of years, is

that, if you are saying to me - could that team win the World Cup, I

don't think so. Tonight they showed sign of improvement. With another

years of experience, with more confidence. The pressure will always

be on, particularly when they are playing at home where they have

football mad fans. I was impressed with them tonight. They were

entertaining in the first half. Comfortable in the second? On the

whole it was an effective performance. They influenced the

game at times very, very well. When they got the second goal through

Paulinho. They kept the ball. Everyone was comfortable on the

ball. You would give them a seven out of ten. Not against a great

Japan team. A good performance. England had that leading up to euro

96, for two years we didn't have competitive games. You have a

friendly head on and a competitive head on. When you get into the big

games that matter is when you judged. They performed well. They

expected Neymar to deliver. Boy didn't he deliver? Didn't take him

long. A spectacular goal for three long. A spectacular goal for three

different reasons. That pass in from Marcelo, second one, that touch from

Fred. That strike is sensational. It really is. The technique is

brilliant. Just the way Marcelo pinged it in. Alan was a centre

forward, not a bad one! If you ask, the ball into the centre forward,

the pace on the pass is crucial. pace of the ball dictates how easy

it is to get a decent touch on it. If you are going to bobble a ball

in, it's difficult to get the touch on it. The defender can think about

it. He can try and nip in in front of you. With the pace Marcelo put on

that. It's delivered hard, the touch that. It's delivered hard, the touch

is a lot easier for Fred. At your professional level, the hardest the

ball is hit into you the easier to bring it under control first time?

Right. We were told to fizz a ball in. Rather than the ball bobbling up

to you, difficult to control along the grass, if it's pinged in there

at chest height or thigh height it's easier to control. You could tell

that. Ping was the word that Steve Wilson used in commentary on the

second goal. The delivery into the box by Alves was hard and firm?

night we have seen them getting night we have seen them getting

forward. Alves on the right hand side. He fizzed the ball in. If you

see Paulinho's touch, cushion it down, one touch. He puts it past the

keeper. It is the pass again which allows Paulinho to get the shot off.

Good touch, good half turn. Good strike. Again, good ball in from

Alves. Gives the defenders no chance to get near the ball because of the

to get near the ball because of the pace on it. The third goal was

equally enjoyable from the pass from Oscar and set up with the tackle

from Silva. We are in mid-June. Oscar if in injury-time is running

Oscar if in injury-time is running 50 yards to set this up. Don't let

anyone tell you that you play too many games in football. This guy

here I thought was Man of the Match that is his 84th game since 1st

July. He has the energy to do that. To run 50 or 60 yards with the ball.

Not only that, but the weight of pass into Jo is brilliant. Good run.

A very, very good finish. The drive and the determination from Oscar,

who I thought did it all night, I just thought he was brilliant.

just thought he was brilliant. Popped up everywhere tonight?

movement between Hulk, Neymar and Oscar. Fred held the ball up and

allowed the three to interchange behind them. 84 games he has had

since last July. It up there?People keep telling you it is. People tell

you the energy is gone. Players are playing too many games - not that

guy. The interchange of those front four, five six at times that

impressed you, particularly Fred and Neymar? Yes. Neymar and Fred, you

know their linkup play was very, very good. He held it up well. He

very good. He held it up well. He really did, Fred. That is cramp,

according to Steve Wilson. We will see how painful cramp will be in a

minute. Good ball in. Very, very good save. Good first touch. We are

thousands of miles away, my eyes were watering when I looked at that!

That didn't look like cramp to me. That hurt and it def wasn't wasn't

cramp. Neymar made run off Fred. That was Fred making a run off

Neymar. Hulk had a chance towards the end. The movement of the front

four, including Fred in that, was excellent. Particularly, first half.

They combined well. Whether Fred was on the right. Great strike there.

Whether Neymar was on the left. The movement between the three or four

movement between the three or four of them was excellent. If Hulk cut

in it created more space for Dani Alves. The full-backs you were

Alves. The full-backs you were paying attention to You can do

whatever whatever system you like. At times they were playing six

across the midfield. The fullbacks getting forward, so far forward.

That could be a problem the better opposition they play. It leaves a

snails areas where they vacate. They cross from the right, Honda got the

shot off. I think the further they go, the better team they play

against that could be a problem. Here, on the positive side, Alves

gets forward. There he is picking the ball up on the right wing. Good

interplay with Hulk. Paulinho, who got the goal, this is in the first

half here. He is supposed to be the defensive midfielder. He drives

forward, to create o another man forward. He nearly gets a shot off

there. On the other side, Marcelo, he can put balls into the box too.

When I was growing up playing, you know, it was frowned upon that both

fullbacks getting forward at once. One would go, one would stay. This

team, both forward. Marcelo putting a good cross in. The other key to

that is Gustavo dropping back as a third centre half, Paulinho can go

forward then and the two fullbacks? The Whenever you see them, time and

time again, two fullbacks. What happens is Gustavo just sits in

between David Luiz and Thiago Silva to give them that little bit of

protection. Hobby is right. When you play against better opposition other

teams will look at that tonight and think - that is how they play. They

will push their fullbacks right on. Other teams in Italy or Spain will

say, that is fine you come on to us, come, come, attack us. We will play

you off and we will counter attack you. We should have a word on Japan.

They created a chance in the first half, they weren't particularly

clear-cut, were they? No, Honda was lively. Out of contract in Russia.

Kagawa, the game passed him by a little bit. Honda was their key

player. They had chances. They had one or two chances. They got into

decent areas without finishing them off. Brazil will have bigger and

better tests than that. You can only beat what is put in front of you.

Scolari said they will build the team bit by bit? That is right. They

are a young and inexperienced team. They are a team under huge pressure,

as the Brazil fans will tell you. I think they will improve and get

better, now with competitive games and with confidence. With another

year's experience, I think it will serve them well. There are two more

matches tomorrow in the Confederations Cup. I will be back

with live coverage of the other game in Group A as Mexico play Italy. It

will be on BBC Three at 7. 30pm. Gary Lineker will be joined by Alan

for Spain verses Uruguay on BBC One for Spain verses Uruguay on BBC One

HD from 10. 25pm You can keep in touch with all the news and action

from the Confederations Cup, loads of interviews on there as well, via

the BBC sport website. That is it from tonight. Thank you to Alan and

thanks to Robbie. The Confederations Cup is underway. We will see Spain