Brazil Maintains Class in Face of Crushing Defeat

Opa!

Germany (7) - Brazil (1)

There's an old saying, "Defense wins championships."

It is clear that Brazil missed Thiago Silva more than they missed Neymar today.

Brazil was able to repeatedly break down the German defense (and even finish one goal), but it was the back line that was Brazil's downfall.

This is a truism in soccer...if you stop the other team 9 out of 10 times, you'll likely lose 0-1. The defense gets blamed and the offense gets all the glory for the occasional goal.

But, today, Germany made Julio Cesar look like a duck in a shooting gallery. Someone can score a goal by himself, but defense is always a team effort, and Brazil just wasn't organized in the back.

There will be much hand-wringing and soul-searching.

With any luck, Brazil will rebound in the consolation match and take home third-place overall.

Let's keep this in perspective...

You will hear lots of words like "embarrassment" and "shame" tossed around in the next few days.

While they didn't put their best foot forward today, Brazil and the players have nothing to be ashamed about.

Most teams in the world have never even made it to the semis. In the US, it would be cause for celebration if the USMNT made it that far.

The players played with pride. They played with class. They showed that you can have character even when losing. At the end, there were prayers, not cheap shots.

Brazil and Brazilians should hold their heads high.

They have been model hosts, both in victory and defeat.

Viva Brasil!

Muito obrigado.