Dunga and Cesar Sampaio? In Brazil they are nobody's idea of the beautiful game or how it should be played. In 20 years time neither will be celebrated in Rio or Sao Paolo or honoured like the great and inventive midfielders of Brazil's past. For now, though, they have nailed down the centre of the Brazilian midfield, a salt and pepper combination shaking up the World Cup as they go.

In the great days the mythical Brazilians played for Brazilian clubs whose colours the world scarcely new, but whose names were imbued with wonder and glamour merely by virtue of the players we associated with them. Santos and Flamengo and Sao Paolo. As the world shrunk the Brazilians came to Europe and flew with the great clubs.

This time around Brazil's two central midfielders make their money in the J-League in Japan, Dunga with Jubilo Iwata, Cesar Sampaio with Yokohama Flugels. Not names to conjure with. Changed times.

The centre of the Brazilian midfield is a place of chiming contrasts. Dunga has hogged the headlines through the first round, bawling Bebeto out of it quite publicly during the game with Morocco and then, hurt by the reaction in the Brazilian media, deciding not to utter a word during the Norwegian game. Brazil lost and the point was succinctly made. The team has lost four times in four years. Twice Dunga was absent and once he was mute.

Placed next to Dunga's worldliness, Cesar Sampaio's devotion to things of a higher plane makes them the World Cup's oddest couple. Two snapshots from France 98 will tell the story in years to come: Dunga's face contorted with anger as he deals with the blithely errant Bebeto, Cesar Sampaio's face swept with ecstasy as he goes to his knees raises his hands and face to the sky and thanks his creator for the gift of two goals against Chile.

In Brazil they explain Dunga's qualities with reference to his lineage. Born in Gaucho country, in the south, his mother is of German extraction, his father of Italian extraction. It all goes to make him a rough-necked, hot-headed dictator with the hard face of a bodyguard.

Dunga is Zagallo's right arm, the embodiment of the coach's resultsoriented philosophy. There is a defiance in their union, a brisk intolerance of the philosophy of romanticism which is demanded of Brazilian teams before they display efficiency and organisation.

It is this shared vision, this mutual acceptance of the preferability of being prosaic winners rather than beautiful losers which has kept Dunga ahead of the posse even through times of turbulence.

The blow-up, wherein he unleashed a string of curses at Bebeto, was coming for a long time. Dunga put it down to Bebeto's naivete at a crucial time in the game, but those close to the Brazilian camp see the incident as an extension of the bitter rivalry between Bebeto and Dunga's close friend Romario, who hasn't made it to France.

Dunga and Romario are part of a harder-living section of a Brazilian team speckled with heavy metal christians and brilliant kids. Some pray, others, like Edmundo and Ronaldo, have grown up in hothouses. Dunga and Romario, and a handful of others, walk on the darker side of the street. Romario likes to claim that he plays better after a night on the tiles. He has constantly exasperated Zagallo, requiring Dunga's intervention more than once to make peace.

By contrast, the prissiness of Bebeto has always irritated the pair and as Bebeto flitted around from club to club over the past couple of seasons, it looked like he wouldn't be making the trip to France. Instead he is here and Romario isn't. At the first sign of a mistake Dunga launches at him.

After the Moroccan game the Brazilian team was forced to take some action to effect a reconciliation between Dunga and Bebeto. A team meeting took place where Dunga gave his side and Bebeto did likewise. Their parting that evening wasn't especially amicable, but they agreed to persist with a working relationship.

"What annoys me was that Bebeto didn't even realise the gravity of his own mistake," said Dunga.

Meanwhile, after the Norwegian game, Dunga turned on the Brazilian media. "You criticised me because I cursed at Bebeto. Today I have remained silent. Are you happy now? I have not said a word for 90 minutes. It is possible that against Chile I may do the same thing." Zagallo and a posse of Brazilian players made soothing noises about the influence of Dunga's leadership. Dunga reiterated comments he had made about the team late last year.

"It lacks the spirit and morale of the team of 1994. I try to teach these things. Humility, solidarity, a sense of sacrifice. I try to teach them."

Cesar Sampaio is a more romantic soul, less a slave to his coach's pragmatism than a servant of the divine order. He appreciates the value of humility, solidarity and sacrifice perhaps a little better than Dunga does, though. He too, tries to teach.

"I tell team-mates that talking to God is like talking to your wife. The more you talk to her the more you love her."

He is part of a Pentecostalist community of Athletes for God founded by Brazilian Formula Three driver Alex Ribeiro. Every day Cesar Sampaio and a handful of Brazilians (Taffarel, Roberto Carlos, Germano, Giovanni, Rivaldo) hold services with a pastor whom they have brought to France. Taffarel plays the organ, the pastor preaches, the boys pray. What Dunga makes of it all is not recorded.

Born 30 years ago in a dormitory suburb of Sao Paolo, Cesar Sampaio has none of the spikiness which makes Dunga such a cactus. He is on the record as saying that he tries not to cheat in matches, not even the sort of diving which the saintly Michael Owen was guilty of the other night.

"I discovered God one day when I was 20 and since then everything in my life has been different. Every time I touch the ball I try to do something good with it, to make the best use as a thanks to God."

Dunga was a central figure in the last World Cup and played in the one before that. By contrast, Cesar Sampaio was a late bloomer. He wasn't in the US in 1994 and his three goals here have doubled the tally he accrued in his 32 previous internationals.

He has surprised everybody except himself. And Dunga.

"I am pleased to be here, but I have always known that it was God's will that I would achieve my ambition," says Cesar Sampaio.

"He is the sort of player I like to play with," says Dunga. "I would have picked him for myself. We are different, but a team."

Against Chile it took just a few minutes to see the team in action. Dunga fed his partner with a perfect pass. Cesar Sampaio put it away. Thanks to God maybe, but thanks to Dunga first.

When Cesar Sampaio scored the first goal of this World Cup against Scotland a couple in Guatemala named their first-born son after him. Hearing of the honour at a press conference, Cesar Sampaio hoped that their paths would cross soon and he sent his gracious good wishes and fond thoughts to Guatemala. Two days ago Dunga announced that he was retiring from international football when this World Cup finishes. The Brazilian media seemed to emit a sigh of relief. Meanwhile, they wished him well.

It takes a Dunga and it takes a Cesar Sampaio to keep the Brazilians spinning.