"Brazil is no longer producing No. 10s, it is madness": Juninho Paulista sounds the alarm

World football is increasingly producing decisive wide players, and Brazil's national team call-ups are a clear reflection of that trend.

The contrast between the abundance of wide forwards and the shortage of No. 9s and No. 10s is a reality that 2002 World Cup winner and former Middlesbrough player Juninho Paulista addressed in an interview on the Charla Podcast.

Brazil no longer producing No. 10s?

"We are no longer producing No. 10s. It is madness. A player stands out in central midfield and starts drifting to the flanks. All our No. 10s are out on the wings," said the former player, who left a lasting mark both in Brazil and abroad.

The names of Estevao and Raphinha were cited as examples of natural No. 10s who ended up being deployed on the flanks. Juninho went further, criticising the current development methodology at Brazilian clubs, which he believes place less emphasis on technical fundamentals.

The CBF (Brazilian Football Confederation) formalised the creation of a Working Group (WG) at the start of the month, dedicated to discussing and proposing improvements to youth football in Brazil. The discussions will focus on five key areas: the competition calendar versus the school calendar; certification and governance of youth-producing clubs; regulation of youth categories; national guidelines for talent development; and the specific development of the women's youth game.

"I think we are failing badly in the development of our players. Today, a player of 12, 13 or 14 is better educated in tactical understanding than in technical foundations. In the old days it was all about foundations, passing, control, dribbling, finishing. We are losing a great deal of that," Juninho lamented.

Amid the wider debate about improving technical foundations in youth football, Juninho Paulista highlighted the importance of futsal in the technical development of future footballers.

"All the great players went through futsal. Short dribbles, quick thinking… We need to go back to that. If we are preparing players to go to European football and they are 24 years old and still waiting in line for their chance, and nothing changes, it is going to take even longer," said the former Sao Paulo, Vasco, Flamengo and Palmeiras midfielder.

Germany's youth revolution comes into focus

When asked about the possibility of introducing a unified youth methodology in Brazil, Juninho was questioned about whether a disruptive process similar to Germany's post-2002 revolution was achievable. The former CBF head of national teams was cautious in his response.

"It has to be done through dialogue. Imposing it by force does not work. You cannot interfere in the youth development work of clubs. We tried to implement a methodology. We produced a study on the DNA of Brazilian football, interviewing numerous coaches and players , it was very important work and one that could be applied at club level," he revealed.

In Germany, the revolution began following the defeat to Brazil in the 2002 World Cup final, when the German Football Association began intervening in clubs' youth development structures.

The project involved improving the conditions for youth development by accrediting a company responsible for monitoring the progress of clubs in that area. Most clubs already had some form of academy, but few had reached a level of excellence. The tools were then put in place to develop better players across Germany.