“DON’T fight between yourselves after I leave,” Fabio Cannavaro jokingly told Ronaldo and Lothar Matthaus as he left the press conference here on Saturday.

“It would be one of different weight classes if we were to do that,” Matthaus responded humorously, poking fun at Ronaldo’s weight.

FIFA’s daily media briefing at the Maracana Stadium saw the three World Cup-winning legends sit side-by-side as they spoke about the ensuings at the tournament in Brazil although it was the injury and subsequent withdrawal of Brazilian superstar Neymar from the Cup which dominated debate.

Italy’s 2006 World Cup-winning captain Cannavaro left the conference room early due to his television commitments with an Italian TV channel.

But till then, a lot had already been discussed: Most notably, the impact of Neymar missing for Brazil for the rest of the World Cup.

The 22-year-old Barcelona superstar suffered a fractured vertebra following a challenge on him by Colombia’s Juan Zuniga during their quarter-final in Fortaleza on Saturday.

Brazil won 2-1 but the joy at the hosts qualifying for the semis was tempered by the injury to their star man.

“Brazil loses enormously with Neymar out,” said Ronaldo, the star of Brazil’s 2002 World Cup winning team.

“For him it was sheer bad luck. Neymar had this dream to take Brazil to glory in his own country but it’s a tough moment for him.

“Hopefully despite his absence, Brazil will win the final and the World Cup victory will be dedicated to him.”

NEYMAR INJURY

The last hurdle en route to the final for Brazil is Germany.

The two countries meet in the semi-final on July 8 in Belo Horizonte with the Germans having ensured their passage with a 1-0 win over France here on Friday.

“I bet the Germany team would’ve wanted to beat Brazil with Neymar in the squad,” Matthaus, who led Germany to the 1990 World Cup title, said.

“Without Neymar, we might have an advantage. I wish Neymar all the best and hope he has a swift recovery.”

Cannavaro, only the third defender to have won a Ballon d’Or in the history of the award, commented on the tackle by Zuniga which led to the injury.

“I think it was a situation which could’ve been avoided,” the former Real Madrid and Juventus defender said.

“I didn’t like the very high knee [of Zuniga on Neymar’s lower back]. That leads me to believe it was a foul with a prior intention to cause harm. It didn’t give me a very good impression. It’s a very evident foul.”

Ronaldo echoed Cannavaro’s views — and being Brazilian of course had a more harsher view.

“I think that the tackle was a very violent one,” he said. “I believe there was an intention to hurt him,” he said.

“That wasn’t normal play. That was very aggressive and there should be action taken on Zuniga.”

GOALS GALORE

On this World Cup as a whole, the three former winners also had similar opinions.

“The World Cup has been fantastic,” Ronaldo, who is the all-time top-scorer of the tournament alongside Germany’s Miroslav Klose with 15 goals, said.

“There have been lot of parties and the fan fests have been full despite a lot having been said about it before it started.

“There has been a high technical level amongst the teams and of course a lot of goals.”

Matthaus highlighted the fact that the smaller teams had risen to the occasion at the World Cup.

“Well, there have been a lot of goals which is of course what we want to see as neutrals,” the former German midfielder said.

“But the best thing about the World Cup is that there have been no easy matches and the smaller teams like Costa Rica and Colombia have given the big boys a run for their money.”

Cannavaro, meanwhile, highlighted some defensive mistakes as the reason for the amount of goals scored but admitted that the tournament had been fantastic.

“As a defender, I’ve noted the defensive mistakes which have led to the great number of goals being scored,” he said.

“But there is no doubt that this World Cup has been a real spectacle. It’s been absolutely fantastic and we will shortly know who is the best.”

CLASSIC SEMI-FINAL

Looking ahead to the crunch clash between Brazil and Germany in the semis, Cannavaro said it would be a tough one to call.

“This will be an incredible match,” he said. “Ever­yone expected this could be a final but both the teams are meeting early. It would be a very difficult game.”

Brazil and Germany contested the final of the 2002 World Cup with Ronaldo’s brace giving the Selecao their fifth World Cup crown.

“It was a great final,” Matthaus, who holds the record for most appearances in a World Cup with 25, reflected, “… and this big guy sitting next to me scored two goals.”

“This would be the game between two big champions. Brazil have five stars on their jersey [referring to their five World Cup wins] and we have one the World Cup thrice.

“Only Italy has more than us [with four]. Its all set up to be a great football match.”

Ronaldo too was looking to a great meeting between the two countries and despite the absence of Neymar the Selecao will start as favourites.

“Brazil start any game as favourites because of the history behind the team and even if they are missing Neymar, I believe they can win any game,” the former Real Madrid and Inter Milan striker said.

“The duel between the two teams will be very exciting and I think Brazil can take heart from their victory against Colombia.

“They played a well-controlled game and they need to play in the same way against Germany.”

Published in Dawn, July 7th, 2014