Rodrygo Goes, at 23 years old, already carries the responsibility of wearing the legendary No. 10 shirt of the Brazilian national team.
With the maturity and experience gained in five seasons with Real Madrid, where he has already won two Champions League titles, the young forward says he is prepared to take on an increasingly protagonist role in the national team.
- “I’m ready to have more and more responsibility and be better,” says the player.
- Since Neymar’s absence at the end of last year, Rodrygo has been the chosen one to wear the number that has already belonged to Pelé, Zico, Rivaldo and Ronaldinho;
- This burden, however, does not seem to weigh on the forward;
- The player reported how aware he is of the weight of the shirt, but guaranteed that he will continue to strive even harder.
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Representation
The No. 10 shirt of the Brazilian national team continues to be a symbol of greatness and expectation. And it’s not just Rodrygo who feels this weight. The shirts he wore against England and Spain were so coveted that he had to ask for an extra batch to distribute among friends and club teammates.
“I asked the CBF to send me a few more, because everyone at Real Madrid asked for them too. Then I went around giving them as gifts,” he says.
Rodrygo, who has been with the Seleção since 2019 and participated in the last World Cup, only established himself as a starter after the Qatar World Cup. In this cycle, he is the player with the most minutes played for Brazil, accumulating 869 minutes in 10 of the 11 matches played. However, for him, just playing is not enough.
“It’s my biggest dream: just as we’ve been winning a lot at Real Madrid, to start winning here with the Seleção. That’s what I work for every day, that’s what I sleep early for, eat well and go to the gym for, to start winning with the Seleção,” he reveals.
Ambitious
Rodrygo’s ambition goes beyond just participating in the games; he wants to win and leave his mark. At Real Madrid, he has already experienced the feeling of constant success.
“It’s an inexplicable feeling that we have at Real Madrid. We’re always winning, always arriving. At 23, I’ve already won the Champions League twice, so it’s time to start winning here. I’m ready for that, I’m preparing and I hope it starts now in the Copa América,” he declares.
Copa América – debut
Brazil will make their Copa América debut on June 24, and Rodrygo, along with other starters, is likely to be rested in the friendly against Mexico this Saturday. He sees the Seleção in a good moment and believes that, with humility and dedication, they can achieve great feats.
“I think we’re on the rise. Argentina are the current world champions, so I think they’re at a level above all the other national teams in the world, but we’re on a very good upward trend. The last friendlies have given us a lot of confidence, so you can already see in everyone’s eyes that everyone is better, excited to continue this new cycle, so I think we’re getting there. We’ll go step by step, with humility, and we’ll get there,” he analyzes.
Remembering Zagallo
Sambafoot Series launched a new documentary about the football legend Zagallo. Known as ‘Velho Lobo‘ and as superstitious as it gets, Zagallo helped shape what Brazilian football is nowadays — as a player and as a coach.
Watch the full series, available on Sambafoot’s Youtube channel.
