After a month and a half leading the Brazilian National Team, coach Dorival is accumulating new experiences and expanding the exchange with coaches and players from major clubs in Brazil and abroad. He has made several observations, took full advantage of the recent tour in Europe to deepen his knowledge, and established a more direct channel with professionals from various sectors, notably with athletes who are on the Seleção’s radar.
Also in Brazil, Dorival and his team have been watching several matches from state and regional championships. He is thus paving the way for the selection of players who will make up his first list as coach of the Brazilian National Team.
In this interview with the CBF, Dorival shares a bit about his routine since the beginning of the year and highlights his goal of bringing new joys and achievements to the Seleção. He emphasizes confidence in this new phase, mentions having a preliminary list of 50 to 55 names, and asks for patience from those who were not included in the roster for the two friendlies in March against England and Spain.
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1 month and a half assessment
Initially, there was an adaptation to a slightly different type of work than what you do at a club. At a club, you play and go to the field the next day to start corrections. At CBF, the work is much more about observations, organization, and direction. We have a relationship with 50 to 55 names of potential call-ups, all these players are being observed, both in ongoing championships in Brazil and in important games outside the country.
Observations
We traveled through European countries watching a considerable number of games. More importantly, we attended most of the training sessions, had initial contact with all players. I want to make a situation clear: there are many pre-selectable names, it is natural that some will be included and others not at this initial stage, but that doesn’t mean that they may not have an opportunity later on. This also applies internally because we watched several games before the trip to Europe. We have four teams scouting within the country to observe players from this preliminary list. I can say that players active in Brazil are practically starting the season; those playing abroad are at a different stage, under different conditions. We also have some sidelined due to injuries; in other words, the names change frequently.
Our main intention at this stage is for the players to get to know us, seeking an approach so that we can also listen to them; in my opinion, this was very important. The acceptance and the way we conversed were very positive; they opened up a lot, exposing difficulties, problems, not holding back on any subject that was addressed. We are seeking an initial awareness of the responsibility we have from the moment we are here; after all, they are very important players in their clubs and will be even more so for the Brazilian National Team in the future, wearing our shirt and trying to help us recover from the current situation we are going through.
Meetings with Coaches in Europe
It’s interesting to see how they respect, like, admire, and follow Brazilian football; the vast majority have data that shows that we are much more observed than we imagine. The second important point is the respect shown to the coaching staff of the Brazilian National Team. Whatever we asked, the attention and responses were always very objective, direct, and rich in detail. It was important to complement everything we observed in each player, their movements in training… and then closing with the possibility of being present at most games, this was crucial, we advanced a great deal of what we had imagined. This exchange with the players, where I pointed out to each one that they were not there for an initial call-up, that everyone was being heard to start a process so that in the future we can have more and more data on each of them and when it comes time for selections, we try to make as few mistakes as possible, having an idea of what we want to implement and the characteristics of each player.
Contact with Players
I believe in maintaining continuity with the work that has been developed at CBF. I cannot abruptly cut off or modify things drastically; I have to try to do what I have always done at clubs… make the most of the work left by the previous professionals who were here; this puts us ahead in terms of formation. When you arrive where everything needs to start anew, it is very complicated and not what I want to do. We have a team structure that has come from previous World Cups; each had their initial opportunity; we have a very good team, we need to find or rediscover the path of a team that gives us and the fans a greater sense of security and certainty… that’s all we want to happen. Therefore, it is important for everyone to feel very comfortable with what they are developing at their clubs. I don’t want to force a player out of their usual characteristics; they may even play in a slightly different position but maintaining their usual traits. That’s why the conversation with coaches was very important, but it’s a slow process that takes time.
First call-up
There is no professional in any field who does not feel a natural anxiety when making decisions based on a new situation, a new condition in their work. We always seek balance so that our work is driven and motivated by harmony. Perhaps our biggest challenge here is to create a re-adaptation or adaptation, and it needs to be quick so that we can find what we envision: the best possible team for these two initial friendlies (against England and Spain). We will try our best and aim to make a good impression from the start for our fans.
Facing strong national teams
It is ideal, and it is natural for us to be experiencing some insecurity, uncertainty, general mistrust due to this moment we are going through. But the Brazilian National Team reinvents itself; it has players of a very high level; if we can find a way between individualities and what they can produce collectively, perhaps we can accelerate this recovery even further. We may face difficulties at first. Nothing will happen by chance. It requires work, time above all else. Those who come here need to be very focused and well-prepared because the ultimate goal lies ahead. Our preparation takes time, actions, and above all corrections; we will try to do this, reduce this adaptation time to quickly find a path to stability and consistency.
Restructuring of men’s national team
We have great professionals in our country who, perhaps if given an opportunity abroad would certainly do excellent work. Here we have excellent professionals; Rodrigo Caetano and Juan are two great examples and they are starting to complement our staff. They are both top-level professionals who have traversed important stages of their careers precisely by facing difficulties and finding solutions to tough problems while ensuring excellent results in their work teams.
What fans can expect from the first call-up
Generally, it won’t satisfy all fans; everyone is eagerly awaiting this first call-up. I am taking many things into account; we have ongoing championships; it’s early in our season here but that doesn’t mean we are ignoring players in Brazil. I ask for some patience; if they are not included in this first list, it doesn’t mean that we are already defining call
