Pele: Brazil should copy Germany for Copa America glory

Brazil must prepare for the upcoming Copa America just like Germany did en route to their triumphant World Cup campaign, according to Pele. 

The South American giants endured a hugely disappointing World Cup on home soil last year, humiliated 7-1 by Germany in an unforgettable semi-final in Belo Horizonte.

That failure saw Luiz Felipe Scolari replaced by Dunga at the end of the tournament, and the 51-year-old has led Brazil to six straight friendly wins ahead of the Copa America, which begins in June.

And Pele, a three-time World Cup winner, believes Dunga should take a leaf out of Germany coach Joachim Low’s book when he takes the national team to Chile in three months’ time.

“Of course it [the 7-1 loss to Germany] was a big surprise what happened with the national team,” Pele told Perform.

“But this is what happens with football. Spain was the best team before the World Cup and they were out in the first round. Football is a box of surprises.

“I hope for Brazil in the next tournament we will be okay because we have excellent players. Some of the best players in Europe are Brazilians. 

“We need to prepare a nice team like Germany did for the World Cup.”

Many believe the decline of domestic football in Brazil was a factor behind the team’s less-than-impressive showing at the World Cup.

Brazil’s biggest clubs have traditionally been forced to cash in on their prized assets due to interest from Europe, but many players are also now opting to move to the lucrative Asian market.

Ricardo Goulart, Everton Ribeiro and Diego Tardelli are among the higher-profile names to have left their homeland for Asia recently, and Pele has called on the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) to do more to keep the country’s best talents.

“The biggest problem today is the best players play outside [of Brazil],” Pele added.

“I think the mistake is that only four players from the national team play in Brazil. The rest of the team play outside. 

“This is something Brazilian Football Confederation should work on.”