Two coaches with very contrasting fortunes

LUIS Felipe Scolari's blunt assessment after Brazil's collapse to the Netherlands was that his team didn't deserve to lose by three goals.

He's wrong. They should have been hammered by a much wider margin in yesterday's match to determine the World Cup's third-best team.

That's not so much a reflection of how toothless Brazil's performance was, but also a testament to just how dominant the Dutch were from start to finish.

The 65-year-old Scolari had barely settled into his seat in the dugout when Robin van Persie blasted home a third-minute penalty earned by the speedy Arjen Robben.

The cheers that had reverberated around the Mane Garrincha National Stadium in Brasilia just minutes earlier during Brazil's national anthem immediately turned to jeers.

Scolari, the man who guided Brazil to the World Cup back in 2002, had no place to hide.

Worse was to come just 15 minutes later when Daley Blind, capitalising on a terribly poor clearance by David Luiz, doubled the Oranje's lead with his first goal of the tournament.

It was only then that the Brazilians, obviously still smarting from that remarkable 1-7 semi-final defeat to Germany, started to awake from their slumber.

The Selecao huffed and they puffed, but they couldn't find a way past the resolute Dutch defence, so well marshalled by defenders Blind and Ron Vlaar and goalkeeper Jasper Cillessen.

Georginio Wijnaldum inflicted further pain on the hosts when he found himself unmarked in the box and he made no mistake from close range.

After going 39 long years without losing a competitive football match at home, Brazil capitulated twice in the space of five days.

The boos that greeted the host nation's latest debacle at the final whistle were deafening. Who could have imagined this happening just a week ago?

Scolari, so used to success throughout his career, knows his legacy will be defined by these staggering defeats to Germany and the Netherlands. He will be reminded of these two heavy losses wherever he goes.

How different things are for his opposite number yesterday, Louis van Gaal. The 62-year-old exits this World Cup with his head held high, his swashbuckling team undefeated after seven tough matches.

He had publicly slammed the relevance of a third-place playoff game, but was seen celebrating all three Dutch goals with gusto.

Winning, after all, is in van Gaal's blood, and he was never going to squander the opportunity to defeat Brazil in their own backyard.

Like all 23 Dutch players, he will be feted when the squad returns to Amsterdam to a heroes' welcome. Van Gaal won't have much time for celebrations, though, not with a flight to catch to England next week.

The incoming Manchester United boss wants the Red Devils to play like the Netherlands. The dethroned English Premier League champions must "sing from the same hymn sheet" as the Dutch, he says.

Old Trafford will surely roll out the red carpet when he eventually arrives at the famous stadium. Van Gaal's future is locked in for the next three years as he looks to revive the fortunes of England's most successful club.

Scolari doesn't have much to look forward to as far as his future is concerned. He has vowed to stay on as Brazil's coach, but he won't be too surprised should the country's football federation give him the boot in the near future.

Scolari failed when his country of 200 million people had placed their faith in him to win that record sixth World Cup title. He couldn't deliver, and soon he will pay the ultimate price.