The only team to win a World Cup without ever being truly tested were Brazil in 2002. Their superiority dawned on a leading European club manager months after the final. He was trying to sign Brazil’s keeper Marcos. The player did physical tests, with disappointing results. Never mind, thought the manager, the guy’s a world champion. So he offered Marcos a contract. The next morning, the manager was awoken at home by a call from Marcos’ agent. “I’m sorry,” said the agent, “Marcos won’t sign for you.”

Then he confessed: Marcos had played the World Cup in pain from an imperfectly healed broken wrist. He could barely even catch a ball. Every day he meant to tell Brazil’s manager, Luiz Felipe Scolari, but he could never quite bring himself to do so. Marcos struggled on till Brazil had won. Total dominance is beating the world with a crocked keeper.

Are today’s Brazil similarly invincible? Even the Brazilians themselves don’t know. The Sele??o typically only encounter the best Europeans once every four years, in the World Cup’s final stages. And given that Friday’s quarter-final pits them against ageing, uneven Croatia, the first true test in Qatar might only come in the semis, if then. Do Brazil have exploitable weaknesses?