Dorival Júnior is close to making his debut with the Brazilian National Team at the 2024 Copa América, his first competition since taking over the Amarelinha (the national team’s nickname) earlier this year. The match will be against Costa Rica next Monday (24) at 10pm at the SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles. Among the goals, in addition to winning the 10th title of the tournament, is the observation and formation of a team aiming at the 2026 World Cup.
Facing Costa Rica, Paraguay and Colombia in the first phase of the championship that also includes champion teams such as Argentina and Uruguay, the coach expects a “special” and “very important” Copa América.
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“I believe it will be a special tournament, very important, because I see that we will have, over these two years, a work that will go through a moment like this. I told the players that everyone will be observed, whether they are playing or not,” he explained.
“What I want to try is to find a team that gives us confidence, that we find a support for this team and, on top of that, we have the obligation to always be attentive to all the players who are here and others who are not,” he added.
With over 20 years as a coach, Dorival has collected titles, finals and decisive matches. However, he confesses that there is a certain anxiety for his debut in the Copa América.
“I believe there is always an anxiety in every professional. It is a natural fact, a fundamental tournament for everyone. It is a very difficult championship, gathers the best teams in South American football. We have to take all possible precautions,” he said.
The Brazilian National Team began to report in Orlando on June 30. Since then, they have been training and played two friendlies, winning against Mexico 3-2 and drawing 1-1 with the United States. The coach explained that the work time was used to implement the style of play.
“This work period was very important so that we could develop, within the concepts we want, some behaviors that I think are important, so that we can reach our best throughout a competition that will be very important,” he said.
“A team that will surely do everything to give us the possibility of going to the last match of the competition, fighting hard for the conquest of an important championship,” he wished.
