Inside Brazil's 2002 World Cup win including Ronaldo heroics and motivation

Everyone remembers their first World Cup.

Mine was in 2002. As a young England fan, the defining moment of that tournament in Japan and South Korea was watching Sven-Goran Eriksson's side lose 2-1 to Brazil in the quarter-finals. It was a Friday morning and the big, fat TV was wheeled into the assembly hall at school.

Despite an early goal from Michael Owen, England were undone by the brilliance of Rivaldo and Ronaldinho. The Brazilians were undeniably the better side that day and went on to be crowned champions of the world for a record fifth time.

Their story, however, could've been very different.

In a new film - 'Brazil 2002: The Real Story' - legends of that famous team recall how they won international football's greatest prize. "It's the story of a winning team," Roberto Carlos tells Mirror Football. "We wanted to show the world what it's like behind the scenes - that feeling, the atmosphere... few people have seen it."

The tale begins in France in 1998, when a 21-year-old dominated European football.

Do you remember Brazil's 2002 World Cup triumph? Let us know in the comments below!

Ronaldo was the world's best player at the time. He became the youngest recipient of the Ballon d'Or (a record that still stands today) and had broken the world-record transfer fee twice. The Inter Milan striker was expected to lead his country to glory in France.

"You can't compare anyone to Ronaldo," claims Carlos. "It was amazing spending time with him this entire time. We had the privilege of being able to spend so many times with him, with the club team [ Real Madrid ] and the national team in World Cups. He forgot that he was the best in the world - he just wanted to play football and have fun. Fantastic!"

Gilberto Silva tells Mirror Football, "I played with him in the national team for a short time. It's different from Roberto because they played together at Real Madrid, but it was something very special, very unique because as Roberto said, he just wanted to have fun and play football and do what he did best - score goals and dribble [past] opponents.

"He had just one thing in mind in training and in the games - score goals and make the team win. [He would] always think, 'How am I going to beat the opponent'. I think this was his target, but it was something unique - very special."

Standing in Ronaldo's way of immortality were the hosts. France boasted a formidable team - one that included Didier Deschamps, Patrick Vieira and the great Zinedine Zidane. The Brazilian press didn't care, however, as they were sure Ronaldo would lift the trophy in the Stade de France.

Yet that didn't happen. Ronaldo suffered a seizure before kick-off, although this didn't become public knowledge until later. He was mysteriously left out of the starting line-up by Brazil boss Mario Zagallo - leaving the world in shock - but was reinstated in time for the game. Unsurprisingly, the forward made little impact and France ran out 3-0 winners.

The uncertainty surrounding Ronaldo's initial absence left everyone in football worried, including the France team.

"We heard some rumours surrounding Ronaldo and his team-mates... We didn't know, really, what was going on," Emmanuel Petit - who scored France's third goal in the final - tells Mirror Football, courtesy of LiveScore.

"My team-mates, some of them, tried to call their friends in the Brazilian team. But when you're preparing for a World Cup final, if I am a Brazilian guy [I'd say], 'You're my friend but we're playing against each other in two days and we're talking about a World Cup final. You want me to give you information about my team-mate? Are you kidding me!?'

"Everyone tried to get information - the press, players, things like this - but the only thing we could know is that Ronaldo had a problem."

For Ronaldo, football was irrelevant that day. He survived a traumatic experience and was still young enough to be Brazil's talisman in 2002. But over the next few years, it seemed as if he nor his country would regain their mantle at the next tournament.

Ronaldo was plagued by a series of serious knee injuries, which threatened to end his career. Ultimately, it would cost him two years of it. Without his greatness, Brazil strived to reach the next World Cup. They qualified for the tournament by just three points and were on their fourth manager since the departure of 1998 boss Zagallo, as Luis Felipe Scolari was handed the reins.

Despite these turbulent years, Brazil and Ronaldo - after making an astonishing recovery from injury - would star in Japan and South Korea. His blistering pace was gone, but his supreme skill and ability would never desert him. He gave Brazil a chance of glory.

But as one Brazilian hero made his comeback, another missed out. Emerson, Scolari's captain, suffered a dislocated shoulder in training on the eve of the World Cup. "He wanted to be a goalkeeper!" explains Carlos. "Rivaldo hit it right in the top bins... when he went to get the ball, his arm went up in the air. We believe a lot in God - what has to happen will happen."

Gilberto adds, "The day before the game, we mixed up the players. For example, Roberto has a team and I have a team. We choose the teams and sometimes the goalkeepers play as a right-back or a centre-back or whatever. And some of the guys who played in a different position [in training], they used to go in goal.

"With him [Emerson], it was an accident. When Rivaldo took the shot and he slid on, he unfortunately dislocated his shoulder. It was tough because he was the captain, and it was one day before the first game. It was a tough time for him, for us - as a team - but also for Scolari to make the decision [to leave him out]."

With Emerson nursing his shoulder injury, Cafu took the armband and Brazil never looked back. They won all three of their group games against Turkey, Costa Rica and China before a tricky 2-0 win over Belgium set up their victorious quarter-final against England.

Brazil faced Turkey again in the semi-finals, with their opponents seeking revenge. Their group game was riddled with controversy, as Brazil were awarded a penalty for a foul committed outside of the box. Rivaldo also hit the headlines when he went down clutching his face after Hakan Unsal kicked a ball at his legs - earning Unsal a red card.

Yet Turkey failed to inflict payback, as Ronaldo scored in a 1-0 win. That game will always be remembered for Ronaldo's ridiculous 'triangle' haircut. No one could understand why the Brazilian opted for that style, but it was a genius decision. Ronaldo later revealed that he got the special trim to distract the press from discussing his fitness. Us journalists are easily fooled.

Ronaldo's semi-final goal was his sixth in the tournament. He was on his way to winning the Golden Boot and completing one of the greatest sporting comebacks of all time. But were Ronaldo's international colleagues ever concerned about his injury record?

"No, we never had any concerns," says Carlos. "He was stronger in 2002 than he was in 1998. I answer this question the same all the time. The preparation and what we did was exactly the same in 1998 as it was in 2002... Ronaldo was great!"

One of the other stars of Brazil's successful campaign was Scolari, a man commonly known as 'Big Phil'. "He was marvellous, spectacular," insists Carlos.

Gilberto adds, "He was the main leader that created the atmosphere. One of the good things he did was not interfere so much in the quality of the players.

"Sometimes the manager can be very good in terms of tactics and strategy, but if you want to teach Roberto or Ronaldo how to play football - come on! Just make the strategy and this is what we want - and the rest the players will solve it on the field."

Scolari saved his greatest trick for the eve of the final against Germany, when he showed the players a video of all the messages of support they had received from back home.

Carlos remembers, "Scolari asked us, 'Everyone ready?' When he put the video on, we thought he was going to put on the German team to watch them play. [But it was] family, kids, fans - everything other than the German team."

Gilberto adds, "Before the final, Scolari showed a video to us about what was going on in Brazil because we didn't have many images on the TV or whatever.

"He should us clips from many, many big cities in Brazil, but one part that comes to my attention is the village of the Indians in the Amazon Forest... On one TV screen, a lot of them were watching the game. When they showed [us it], the light was off. When it came up, everyone was crying! We were crying!

"For us it was a sense of pride and understanding that we have to do our best for those guys because they are behind us and supporting us."

Scolari's motivational video worked perfectly. A brace from Ronaldo in Yokohama secured a 2-0 win and Brazil's fifth World Cup. Football's most successful nation and the world's best player were back at the top where they belonged, as Ronaldo went on to regain the Ballon d'Or later that year.

Despite the nightmare of 1998, all of Ronaldo's injuries, their unimpressive qualification campaign, losing Emerson on the eve of the finals and their management upheavals - Brazil were champions of the world again. It truly is a remarkable story - and one that deserves to be told on the big screen.

Roberto Carlos and Gilberto Silva were speaking at the premiere of 'Brazil 2002: The Real Story' a documentary produced by Entourage Sport & Entertainment and Collective Media, available now on Sky Documentaries

Emmanuel Petit is supporting LiveScore's Fear of Missing Scores campaign. If you're unable to watch the World Cup live, download the LiveScore app for real-time updates. You can download the app here: livescore.com/en/mobile

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