Rio de Janeiro – Italian Carlo Ancelotti makes history by becoming the fourth foreign coach to lead the Brazilian national team, and the first to have the opportunity to manage it in a World Cup.
Ancelotti’s three predecessors, the Uruguayan Ramón Platero (1925), the Portuguese Joreca (1944) and the Argentinian Filpo Núñez (1965), had brief stints with the “Canarinha”. Their names fade into the history of a football where the Brazilian shirt did not yet display the multiple stars that adorn it today.
Ramón Platero
Platero, of Uruguayan origin, was the only foreign coach to manage Brazil in an official competition, the 1925 South American Championship, a tournament that laid the foundations for the Copa América.
At that time, Platero was the coach of Vasco da Gama and was called up to manage the national team. Brazil played in a white jersey and had not yet participated in the World Cup, which would begin in 1930.
His time with the national team included four matches in the South American Championship held in Argentina, where Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay competed. The trophy went to the host team.
The press of the time also remembers Platero for a curiosity: simultaneously he directed Flamengo and Vasco da Gama, clubs with a strong rivalry in Rio de Janeiro.
Joreca
The Portuguese Joreca, coach of São Paulo, was invited to manage Brazil in two friendlies in 1944. On the bench, he had the support of the Brazilian Flávio Costa.
The selection, which still wore white and had no stars on its uniform, achieved resounding victories over Uruguay, with scores of 6-1 and 4-1.
After these matches, Flávio Costa took over the leadership of the national team, preparing it for the 1950 World Cup, while Joreca resumed his position at São Paulo.
Filpo Núñez
The Argentinian Filpo Núñez coached Brazil in a match against Uruguay in 1965, in the Copa Independencia, a friendly tournament organized for the inauguration of the Mineirão stadium in Belo Horizonte.
The Brazilian Sports Confederation (CBD) determined that the match would be played by Palmeiras, representing the national team. From the goalkeeper to the forward, including the coach and the masseur, everyone was from Palmeiras. The coach was Núñez.
