Marcia was absent, Tite

The dream of a sixth World Cup title has been postponed until 2022. The Brazilian national team was stopped by Belgium and will return home early. The truth is, the football displayed by the team led by Tite was not inspiring. From the first game, we encountered difficulties in beating our opponents. The draw against Switzerland in the opening match, and the struggle to score a goal against Costa Rica, already set the tone for what the World Cup would be like for the Brazilian team.

Neymar, visibly lacking rhythm in some games, wasn't the star we know him to be. Tite trusted the wrong savior. Jesus, Gabriel, didn't help much and went down in history as the first starting center forward for Brazil not to score a goal in a World Cup edition. Casemiro was missed. One of Real Madrid's key players, in Zidane's system, and also in Adenor's national team, was suspended. He was replaced by Fernandinho, who had a performance worthy of the 7-1 defeat against Germany in 2014.

Coutinho had his worst game in the World Cup, and the whole team missed their main playmaker. Some of Tite's choices for the squad were questionable. Tyson, for example, who was called up for his versatility and ability to change the game plan, wasn't used, even though the team needed to score 3 goals against Belgium in the second half. Perhaps Luan, from Grêmio, and Lucas Paquetá, from Flamengo, could have been more useful in that regard. The lack of a fixed captain, someone who would tell Neymar to stop styling his hair and who would command the team on the field, also generated criticism. It even made us miss Dunga in that role.  

But Tite's big mistake was not taking Márcia. The Mayor of Rio de Janeiro, Marcelo Crivella, who is no fool, made sure to summon the star player to his government. He gave her the number 10 jersey, the captain's armband, and the mission of solving the problems of his "buddies," both on and off the field—I mean, the church. In a secret training session for 250 pastors and religious leaders, held last Wednesday, the 04th, the mayor told pastors and faithful that they could bring any demand and, in exchange, the city hall would talk about what it had to offer the guests.

Audio recordings circulating online show Crivella outlining his tactical plan and instructing his group on how to proceed. "We're organizing a cataract surgery campaign. I've contracted 15,000 surgeries by the end of the year. So, if any of you have someone in your church with cataracts, if you know anyone, please talk to Márcia. Just talk to Márcia, she'll take note, forward it, and in a week or two they'll be having surgery," the mayor stated. The other 15,000 people who have been on the waiting list for two years for the same surgery must be lamenting not knowing Márcia or not attending the same church as Crivella.

Crivella continued to proclaim his own personal gospel to his "cronies," announcing other privileges offered only to his chosen ones. "The other one is varicose veins. Most are women who burst a varicose vein in their leg and open a wound that won't heal. And the lady just changes the dressing. Today there's a way, they inject a medicinal foam into their vein and it closes the wound, a blessing. Also, please talk to Márcia. And there's vasectomies for men, we're eliminating the waiting list," added Crivella. Once again placing the responsibility for solving the problem on the shoulders of the star of his team.               

The Márcia the mayor is referring to is his government assistant, who, according to him, knows all the hospital directors in the state and is there to "get things done" for the evangelicals. "It's very important for the brothers to have Márcia's or Marquinhos's phone number, because sometimes unforeseen events occur. If there's an emergency, call. Call Márcia and she'll call me, or Marquinhos… It's important to have a channel to help in an emergency." Oh, if only Tite had Márcia on the bench!

The leak of the meeting, which was initially supposed to be confidential, could cause serious problems for Crivella. The Public Prosecutor's Office is keeping a close eye on the matter, and his impeachment has already been considered. If everything indicates that Tite will remain in charge of the national team for another 4 years, Crivella's term is at serious risk. His lack of "fair play" with the population of Rio de Janeiro proves that his campaign slogan was a farce. His "Let's take care of the people" doesn't include just anyone. Only his brothers in faith.

Crivella is an actor. In front of the cameras, he promises the moon, cries, complains of persecution for being an evangelical Christian, and accuses his "haters" of trying to sabotage his success. He even reminds me of a certain player on the national team, who's a star, but loves to put on a show. In fact, if I were Tite, I'd take Márcia to Qatar. It's proven that when the game gets tough, she steps in and solves it. Something that Tyson, Fred, Fernandinho, William, Gabriel Jesus, and Paulinho couldn't do.

Hazard of Brazil! Lucky are those who have Márcia.