World Cup Final puts Brazilians in a dilemma

I watched President Dilma Rousseff of Brazil sit down for an interview with CNN's Christiane Amanpour after the 7-1 bludgeoning at the hands of Germany and could not hide my sympathy to the poor woman.

In fact Christiane made matters worse by starting off the interview on a condoling note by saying "I have to extend my condolences to you and the entire nation..." Ouch! I have never seen a humbler Rousseff!

She looked too meek for the interview. She looked beaten and withered. And I understood her predicament.

That was, and still is, the national feeling of the whole of Brazil. Doing well to represent her country in these times of adversity! Football can humble a nation.

And for a politician facing an election in the next few months to go through this is disheartening! Total disorientation!

But now Germany face Argentina in the World Cup Final. Whom do you support as a Brazilian? Terrible, it has to be!

Ordinarily one would expect Brazilians to support Argentina for the geographically fact that the two countries are from South America and that Biblical thing of loving your neighbor as you love yourself.

Blood being thicker than water, you know! If that's what you think then maybe you've just walked in and you have no idea how these two countries love to hate each other in the football spheres.

If a Brazilian gets an Argentine being lynched he'll howl the biggest rock at the Argentine. It's that bad!

The Brazil-Argentina football rivalry is one of the biggest in the world running from as early as the 1940s.

A meeting of the two teams always generates a lot of nervy scenes even if it's those rare friendly matches.

In fact now that they are not meeting in this competition, FIFA has been spared the risk of attention being diverted from the World Cup to the Battle of Rosario.

These are two countries that are still embroiled in the global debate of who was the world's best player ever between Argentine Diego Maradona and Brazilian Pele.

Even FIFA has never settled this debate! So to expect even the idlest of Brazilians to support Argentina in the Finals is wishful thinking.

They cannot! As a matter of fact, the 2014 World Cup will be the most traumatic in the annals of Brazilian history if Argentina wins it- in the Maracana!

But what option do the Brazilians have at the Finals? Support Germany against Argentina. Ouch! No way! Esqueça! The pain is still fresh. No need for more injury to an already dented ego.

So the cliche comes to play again; Brazil are caught between a rock and a hard place. What do you chose?

This is the reason football is called the beautiful game. In its weird beauty, it humbles arrogant men.

It captivates people of all races to think of only one thing- the game!

Forget terrorism, hunger or any other calamity that can attack a people, football makes us one! For those who still dont think football is the beautiful game, better luck next time!