Diego (possibly, probably) to the Olympics

By: Brian | July 8th, 2008

Diego may be going to Beijing.

So today, tactical genius Dunga has scribbled some names on a team sheet and handed it over to the Bejing authorities. Included on the sheet wedged in between Ronaldinho and Anderson? The name of Diego Ribas da Cuhna. Up to this point it looked as though Werder would be denying Diego his Olympic desires in the interest of getting him into preseason preparations this week. However, there were recent murmurs of a planned discussion regarding his participation in the Games.

It’s widely known that the Olympics are the one major trophy Brazil have yet to get their hands on and this roster looks like a serious attempt to make that happen. The major exemption is of course Kaka, who was firmly denied the opportunity to play by Milan. Diego seems to genuinely love playing for his country, especially so because it’s relatively new to him. He undoubtedly begun talking to good friend Robinho about the possibility of teaming up for something meaningful and maybe asked Werder to reconsider. As much as they really didn’t want to let him go, perhaps Bremen are ready to relent, which honestly might not be a bad idea. It’s not good business to upset your prized playmaker who may be/possibly/could be looking to move away soon.

When we last visited this topic, the Werder Offside were gradually throwing our support behind the management and coaching staff. Begrudgingly. That’s still our position, but there is a part of our cold, cold heart that would like to see Diego play every minute in every match and come back to Northern Germany with this.

To do it? Brazil are in a group with hosts China, and footballing juggernauts New Zealand and Belgium. First match is on 8/7 and the final is on 8/23.

What does this mean for Werder? If Brazil go to the final, it would result in Diego missing training camp (not too much of a problem), a Cup match (definitely not a problem), the opener away to Bielefeld (slight problem), and the home opener versus Schalke (the real problem). The Blues have strengthened an already strong squad over the last few weeks and look to be Werder’s main rival in wrestling the big silver plate from Bayern’s hands. A slow start would not be advised.

The one point of slight solace? Brazil’s possible squad also includes Rafinha, the Schalke right back.