On Tuesday (9), the Brazilian national team overcame Japan in the battle for third place in the SheBelieves Tournament. The game ended in a 1-1 draw, and in the penalty shootout, goalkeeper Lorena made three great saves, confirming Brazil’s 3-0 victory in the shootout.
During the match, the goalkeeper had already made a penalty save, which would have given Japan an advantage. After securing third place in the tournament, Lorena recalled her recovery after a serious injury and commented on her performance in the match.
“Throughout my career, I always have a lot of happiness in these penalty moments, I can be very decisive. I am very happy, these saves are the result of work that I have been doing for a long time to come back strong.”
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“I know that I am not in my best phase, in my best moment, but I work very hard every day to achieve. Regardless of anything, I dedicate these penalties to my family, my wife, and my son who are always by my side.”
Called up for the first time by Arthur Elias, Lorena was sidelined after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee during training. The goalkeeper was away for a year and returned to the national team for the She Believes Tournament.
The goalkeeping coach of the Women’s National Team, Edson Junior, congratulated Lorena for the match and expressed the coaching staff’s happiness with the goalkeeper’s performance.
“It’s a very happy day for the coaching staff, for the national team, for the athletes, for Lorena. She has always represented the Brazilian national team jersey very well in all the opportunities she had. She went through a very difficult period, a painful process of recovering from a very serious injury,” he said.
Edson Junior also emphasized that Brazil is well served in goal.
“May this re-debut of hers be a very important step for our journey towards what we aim for in the Olympics. I see that we are on the right track, with excellent goalkeepers, and it increases our range of options and the responsibility when choosing the goalkeepers who will represent the national team in the Olympics. Everything that has been happening only gives us the certainty that we are on the right path for the greater goal,” he concluded.
