Luiz stars for Brazil with 35m free-kick
QUARTER-FINAL
BRAZIL 2
(Thiago Silva 7, David Luiz 69)
COLOMBIA 1
(James Rodriguez 80-pen)
Brazil had looked to Neymar to light up this crucial game. Colombia turned to James Rodriguez. Instead, it was David Luiz who stole the show.
The affable centre back, distrusted by Jose Mourinho, hit the best free-kick of the tournament and sent his country to the semi-finals of the World Cup.
Nobody saw that coming. It was, by any definition, a stunning free-kick. It seemed too far out to risk trying a shot, but Luiz clearly knew better.
The ball was struck so well that it barely spun, just rising over the wall like a guided missile.
David Ospina in the Colombia goal should have moved quicker, but the ball seemed to accelerate all the way until it crashed into the top corner.
And the Maracana went absolutely wild. Luiz went racing over to the touchline, veins bursting out at his neck, head wobbling, fists clenched, looking for all the world like Marco Tardelli, Italian hero of the 1982 World Cup.
Luiz has had a testing season at Stamford Bridge and was used fleetingly by Mourinho either as emergency defensive cover or in the midfield, where his manager felt he could do less damage.
But that didn't stop Paris St Germain from making an astonishing £50 million ($107m) bid for his services in the summer, a world record for a defender.
You get the distinct impression that Mourinho would have settled for far less. But PSG don't have to worry about cutting corners and Luiz's profile, especially after this World Cup, will fit their plans for global branding.
Besides, on the evidence of this World Cup, Chelsea's loss will be Paris' gain. Luiz has been the heartbeat of this Brazilian team, from the way he belts out the national anthem to the way he inspires and encourages his teammates.
A measure of the man was seen after the final whistle when he consoled Colombia's James Rodriguez and pointed him out to the crowd, imploring them to salute the tournament's top scorer.
CLASS ACT
He is a class act and, while Zlatan Ibrahimovic brings timeless style to PSG, the owners would love a character like Luiz to make them more likeable in developing markets. Such is modern football.
This is not a vintage Brazil side. They have impressed for only 45 minutes of this tournament. They are workmanlike and unspectacular, using their physicality unashamedly and doing whatever it takes to win.
If they are to lift the World Cup, the only Brazilian World Cup winning side they will be compared to will be the prosaic and dour 1994 squad.
Not that Scolari will be unduly concerned by that. He came to win. He never promised how he would win.
But, for all that, players like Luiz are avatars for what Scolari does bring to the party. Luiz may be a little clumsy and eager, but he has great heart and you sense that he helps bind the squad together, particularly when the critics have the knives out.
He is a team man and he is now, if he wasn't before, a national hero.
Every ounce of that character will be required when Brazil face Germany in the semi-finals. They will do it without Luiz's foil, Thiago Silva, for he has been suspended, and the injured Neymar, who is out of the tournament.
But, when Luiz powers home free-kicks from 35 metres, it's hard to imagine any scenario that doesn't involve winning, never mind attempting to find fault with anything he does.
This was a fine performance, a match-winning performance and, who knows? Maybe even Mourinho was a little bit impressed.
They will love Luiz in Paris.
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