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Backheel Breakfast: A marketing firm picks the Brazilian national team
If you were wondering why the deepest team in the world can’t win anything, now you know.
Paul Gilham/Getty Images
According to Brazilian newspaper O Estadao, a marketing firm has been choosing the Brazilian national team since 2011. They claim that the terms of the agreement state that players have to be approved by the firm as “marketable” before they’re added to the squad, that the federation has to provide them with official documentation of injuries, and that there aren’t any games set aside for the manager to test out young or fringe players.
It’s been an open secret for a long time that players like Kaka and Ronaldinho get included in squads due to sponsor pressure, but no one ever suspected that sponsors literally picked the team from top to bottom. If this is true, it’s a horrible look for Brazil. Unsurprisingly, they’ve denied the report.
In the news
Boca Juniors have been kicked out of Copa Libertadores after their fans pepper sprayed River Plate players. (MARCA)
Some BBC reporters got detained for reporting on Qatar’s unfair working conditions. (BBC)
Financial fair play rules are going to be relaxed. They favored huge clubs and were going to get UEFA sued by up-and-coming clubs. (ITV)
Real Madrid won’t confirm or deny Carlo Ancelotti’s position. (Guardian)
Reminder about how stupid the new Champions League is: Real Madrid are out of Pot 1. (AS)
Cristiano Ronaldo has passed Alfredo di Stefano on Real Madrid’s scoring list. (ESPN FC)
No one wants to buy Parma. (Football Italia)
Here’s what you need to know about newly promoted Bundesliga side Ingostadt. (Bundesliga)
LAFC unveiled a rendering of their new stadium. (MLS)
You should be reading
Sid Lowe on Barcelona’s turnaround. (Guardian)
James Yorke on De Gea, Hull, and the stats behind other Premier League stories. (Stats Bomb)
Omar Chaudhuri on the EPL’s UEFA coefficient tanking. (5 Added Minutes)
Fun with transfer rumors
The section in which nothing should be taken seriously. It’s rumor season, so this section will be expanded, and as the summer rolls on, will probably be bigger than the actual news section.
Wolfsburg say Kevin de Bruyne is not for sale. (Daily Mail)
Inter want to sign Ciro Immobile from Dortmund. (Football Italia)
Liverpool might sign Stevan Jovetic from Manchester City. (Mirror)
This weekend’s games
Barcelona won La Liga by beating Atletico Madrid.
That meant it was a bad day for Real Madrid, but Cristiano Ronaldo scored a hat trick.
What to watch on Monday (click for listings, all times ET)
West Brom vs. Chelsea (3 p.m.) - Izzy Brown will make his Chelsea Premier League debut against the team he came up with.
Napoli vs. Cesena (3 p.m.) - A must-win for Napoli to keep their faint Champions League hopes alive.
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