Uruguay's Alcides Ghiggia finds the back of the net. Credit: AP/Press Association Images
CONFEDERATIONS CUP HOSTS Brazil meet Uruguay in the semi-final of the competition in Belo Horizonte tonight.
For fans of La Celeste (The Sky Blues) the match will evoke memories of arguably their greatest achievement - defeating La Selecao in the 1950 World Cup final.
Staged in front of nearly 200,000 fans at Rio's Maracana Stadium, which will also host next year's final, the home side only needed a draw as the tournament ended in a four team mini-league (and not knockout stages) in those days.
When they went in front two minutes into the second half through Friaca, the stadium exploded. However, the visitors soon silenced the crowd with two goals from Juan Shiaffino and Alcides Ghigghia before going on to clinch the Jules Rimet Trophy for the second time.
YouTube credit: FIFATV
While they may have been a bogey team for Brazil back then, Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez hasn't tasted victory in the fixture in his last four attempts while you need to go back as far as 2001 for their last win over the heavyweights of South American football.
Speaking about tonight's game, Tabarez said: "Matches against Brazil are very special and this a very important match for us. We will certainly be motivated for what is most definitely one of the great fixtures in international football.
Brazil is Brazil and so we will have to fight every inch of the way but we believe we are up for the challenge. I hope we will see a fiesta of South American football.
"We are very motivated but it's 11 against 11."
-Additional reporting from AFP
Married to a Uruguayan women and she isn’t confident about tonight’s match!
The nation’s football history is given a poor showing by our media I’m afraid and the previous comment by the South Park character displays this. It is a nation of just over 3.3million which FIFA recognise as 4 time world champions and are 15 time South American champions. When their national game was in the doldrums in the late 70′s and 80′s they played rough house tactics but that is no longer the case.
Xenophobic English media still like to display them as dirty, cheating foreigners, it’s a pity that many fans happily go along with this.
Tabarez likes to play on the break, the idea being that Suarez, Cavani or Forlán should grab a winner with wing backs like Cáceres, Alvaro or Maxi Perreira teeing them up. Ruso Perez, Arevelo Ríos or Seba Eguren shore up the midfield and provide cover for Lugano and Godín at the back. Unfortunately this tactic hasn’t worked since the Copa America win two years ago. Lugano is past it, the midfield plays too deep and provide little support up front where Cavani in particular cannot perform for La Celeste. If I were picking the team it’d be: (4-3-2-1) Muslera, M Perreira, Cáceres, Godín, A Perreira, Pérez, Arevelo Ríos, Gargano, Rodríguez, Lodeiro, Suarez.
This Brazil team have weaknesses so I’ve a few bob on Uruguay, Suarez to score first and Uruguay to win 3-2 @ 225/1 is worth a flutter!
Uruguay will rough up the Brazilians 2nite & steal the win
Do you see?