Ronaldo pokes Brazil into the final (Allsport)

By Neal Collins

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Phenomenal technique. That's how BBC commentator John Motson described the goal which put Brazil through to the World Cup final. Scottish genius Alan Hansen raved about how Ronaldo beat seven men with a moment of genius.

Rubbish.

Flukey toe-poke. That's the truth of it. Ronaldo, overweight, sluggish, petulant and unfit, now has six goals in the tournament and if Germany's Miroslav Klose and Brazil's far more talented Rivaldo don't score in the final, Big Ron will win the Golden Boot.

Sure, sponsors Nike will be happy. So too will the television companies, desperate to hype this dying tournament.

But is Ronaldo truly still a world class asset?

Luiz Nazario De Lima, to give him his full name, spent the entire 1994 tournament on the bench when Brazil last won the World Cup in the USA. He was useful at France 98 until his collapse before the final, won 3-0 by France.

And this time, after a stream of injuries and comebacks at Inter Milan, he finds himself playing when he is less than 100 percent again.

Before this semi-final against the testing Turks, Ronaldo was described as struggling with his "knees, muscles and general fitness". And it shows, despite half-a-dozen goals.

Let's not mention the fact that one of those was a clear own goal, another a dodgy deflection, none of them classics in the Rivaldo class.

Let's examine his effort. Sure, he did glide a bit through the Turkish defense. And yes, as Mottie said, he "took it early". But a toe punt is NOT phenomenal technique. Not in my book, not in anybody's book.

Poor old Rustu, the David Seaman pony-tailed lookalike apparently wanted by Arsenal (Highbury just wouldn't be the same without a poxy hairband), just failed to keep it out and, like Ronaldinho against England in the quarter-final, we shall now have to live with weeks of analysts drooling over Ronaldo's erm... moment of magic.

How lucky can these Brazilians be? Ronaldinho's 42-yard free kick, as Seaman has confirmed, was "a freak. Nobody would try to score from there. If anybody else could put the ball into the top corner from there, you'd have to pay them a lot of money".

Ronaldo's 15-yard toe-poke falls in a similar category. The world's greatest player knew he had overdone the run. His pace is gone, his girth is expanding, his legs have never been same, not since just before the 1998 final and the mysterious fit.

As any rank amateur will tell you, if you're desperate, try a toe poke. And afterwards, try to pass it off as a moment of magic.

So we will conveniently forget Ronaldo's other botched efforts at this World Cup. And we will pretend he didn't start two niggly handbaggish battles with the poor Turks.

Instead, we shall laud his talents, rave about his goal, award him the Golden Boot and laugh at his cute hairstyle. That's how Nike, sponsors of Brazil, Ronaldo and God, would want it. FIFA won't mind it either. After all these 1-0 wins and 0-0 draws in the knock-out stages, they desperately need a superhero to emerge.

Poor old Turkey are forgotten until Christmas dinner. Hakan Suker, awful throughout the tournament, nearly produced a wonderful volley on the turn to equalise, but it wasn't to be.

The best Brazilian player at this World Cup? Goalkeeper Marcos, perhaps Luís Felipe Scolari's most controversial choice for this World Cup. Scolari went back to his old club Palmeiras to make him national number one. And Marcos repaid that faith time and again behind that dodgy defence.

For once I find myself supporting the Germans on Sunday. Okay, their route to the final was far from taxing. Saudi Arabia, Cameroon, the Republic of Ireland, Paraguay, USA and South Korea stood in their way.

Brazil had to overcome a marginally more difficult Turkey, Costa Rica, China, Belgium and England.

Only the Irish, thanks to Robbie Keane's last minute effort, have sneaked anything past the ageless German goalkeeper Oliver Kahn.

Marcos has been beaten three times in a World Cup which is running out of goals. The two keepers will vie for the Man of the Tournament tag.

At Yokohama on Sunday the Brazilians, with Ronaldinho back after suspension, must attempt to score the second goal in six goals against the Germans, who they have NEVER played before in a World Cup tournament.

And I can see Brazil coming up with another spawny effort. Perhaps a toe-poke, or a wind-assisted free-kick with the too-light Fevernova ball.

I'd settle for a super goal from Rivaldo, the real talent in the Brazilian team.

But with any luck Klose, a roof tiler from Poland until he was spotted by Kaiserslautern 18 months ago, will score two toe pokes at the other end to grab the Golden Boot and the World Cup.

Anything would be better than yet another drab 1-0 win by either side with the Telly experts trying to pretend it's a classic.

This tournament desperately needs a goal-happy final. The knock-out stages have been real yawn-a-minute stuff.

Bring on the toe-pokes!

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