Gilberto plays in Brazil 2-0 win
March 3, 2010
Gilberto played last night in Brazil’s friendly 2-0 win over Ireland at Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium. He took a break from his duty in Greece to pop over to London for the evening to line up with his fellow yellow compatriots.
Gilberto tackles Duff
Former Arsenal midfielder Gilberto Silva believes the Republic of Ireland provided the perfect test as Brazil continued their preparations for the World Cup with a 2-0 friendly win at the Emirates Stadium.
Veteran midfielder Gilberto – playing back at the club he left for Panathinaikos in 2008 – believes yesterday’s game was just the examination Brazil needed as they prepare for the challenges ahead in South Africa.
‘It was very hard and Ireland gave us a lot of difficulties,’ said Gilberto, who was part of the Brazil side which won the World Cup in 2002.
‘They marked us very tight and high up.
‘However, in the second half we had some more space and could pass the ball with more fluency, which was how we scored the second goal.’
Gilberto, 33, added: ‘It will be hard in South Africa, but we will do our best. The first thing is to qualify from the first round, and then we will fight for every game until the end.’
Gilberto played a normal sort of game – tidying up at the back, and occasionally distributing the ball out wide from the middle.
He received an excellent welcome from two sets of fans – obviously the Brazil fans, as well as English supporters who saw him line up for Arsenal so many years.