When Brazil hosted the 2014 FIFA World Cup, there was an expectation that the Selecao would go on to lift the famous trophy.Their 7-1 destruction by Germany was an embarrassment to the nation. It's not just about the defeat, it was the manner of the loss that hurt the most.Two years on, Rio and Brazil needs a strong Olympics to banish the memories of that day. The organisers and sponsors are hoping that the likes of Usain Bolt, Mo Farah, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Michael Phelps go all the way to gold. For a nation obsessed with football, they are pinning their hopes on both the men's and women's football teams to reach the final at the Maracana.Neymar is the poster boy for the men's squad, and for the women, the pressure falls on the shoulders of their deadly forwards: Marta and Cristiane.Manager Vadao couldnt ask for a stronger pairing to call upon, but the attacking duo will play under the weight of a nation, and that might take its toll and ultimately decide whether or not they can move up from silver to gold.Marta, named as FIFA's World Player of the Year for five years straight between from 2006 and 2010, is considered one of the greatest players to ever grace the women's game.In Cristiane, Brazil are partnering the speed, skill and eye-catching ability of Marta with a forward who has scored more goals than anyone else in this competition.This is her fourth Olympics, making her debut in Athens at just 19. This year, instead of finishing as top scorer, she hopes to swap the goals for gold.Im very proud of that record, especially as I achieved it at a young age, she told FIFA.com. The main objective is to win the gold medal, though. Anything else will be because of that. My goals will only be useful if they help the team.With two silver medals in the bag, she understands the expectations and pressure from the home crowd.Theres a risk, but its a good risk, and although people say we dont have to go and win the gold, for me, as someone who has played at other Olympics, won two silvers and come close to the gold, I think we are obliged to win it."Playing at home with the fans on our side is going to give us a boost," she continued. "But the demands will also be there. Brazilians can be impatient and they only support you to a certain point. When their expectations arent met, they can start to get edgy, she added, but apparently with a smile on her face.Brazil are now ranked eighth in the world, but they will be hoping that their history in this tournament leans in their favour.The team is full of experience, with 38-year-old Formiga continuing to anchor the midfieldshe has played in every Olympics tournament since it began in 1996.Vadao can also call on players who play for clubs such as Orlando Pride, Barcelona, Houston Dash and Paris Saint-Germain.While speaking to FIFA.com, Cristiane took the time to pick out a couple of names from the squad that people should be keeping an eye on:Theres Bia Zaneratto, a strong, fast attacker who strikes the ball really well. Shes improved her technique and she can win games for you. Then theres Andressinha, whos an attacking midfielder. Shes a very good player, very intelligent and a great passer of the ball. They have a lot to offer the team in terms of structure, and theyre ones to watch because theyre the future.If they are the future, Cristiane and Marta are the present. When on their day, Brazil's attacking duo have the ability to trouble any defence in this tournament.In a recent interview with Brazilian news site UOL (h/t the Huffington Post), Marta was cautious not to put more pressure on her team-mates. We almost won the gold medal in 2008, so now we will do our best.They should have enough quality to qualify out of the group, drawn with Sweden, China and South Africa. The latter will be the favourites to miss out, but after Sweden's poor showing at the World Cup in Canada last year, they will have to be careful, too.Brazil has some atoning to do, too. They were beaten 1-0 by Australia in the last 16 of the World Cup last summer. That signified a changing of the guard and raised doubts over the legitimacy of the South American nations place at the top table of womens football.China are up first in the opening game in Rio on Wednesday and Vadao will be happy to have some inside knowledge of their opponents. Four members of his squad play for Chinese clubs, including Fabiana and Debora, who play for Dalian Quanjian, and Rafaelle and Raquel who play for Changchun Yatai.Darlene, who also plays for Changchun Yatai,is one of the four reserve players who are still part of the teams training squad.They could provide some valuable insight since Changchun Yatai's line-up includes three players that are on China's national team.Speaking to reporters in Itu, in the south-eastern state of Sao Paulo, via theShanghai Daily, Darlene described her Changchun Yatai team-mates as very good."I have talked with my Brazilian team-mates quite a lot about how things are over there, but everything on our side is going well," said the striker.Asked how the players would react to facing off against her Chinese team-mates, the 26-year-old admitted "in the match, there is no friendship, there is rivalry. Outside or after the match, we talk a little, 'hello', 'ni hao' (hello in Chinese). But inside we will be focused."The hope is that playing against Sweden, China and South Africa in the group stage will give the team enough of a run to get up to speed and fully flying before the knockout stage.Brazil have been involved in a lengthy training camp, used to get everyone gelled together and ready for the Olympics, but there is no substitution for actual game time.Expectations are high, but with two of the most experienced and dangerous forwards in the world leading the attack, they shouldnt take too long to get up to speed. The bigger question is whether they have enough to go all the way.No one is questioning Martas place in the pantheon of womens football, and she will have more than enough ability to take Brazil far, but even with her and the competitions top scorer, it is going to be a much bigger challenge to defeat teams like Germany, France and the reigning Olympic champions: the United States of America.Brazil are prepared. They have the talent to challenge for a medal and have ability all over the pitch, but it may take more than just the roar of the home crowd to push them to a gold medal this summer.
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