MEET BRAZIL’S WORLD CUP CAPTAIN CREDIT: 4-4-2 Magazine “I WOUI.D SACRIFICE MY LIFE FOR ANYONE ON THIS TEAM• Brazils captain Thiago Silva on eating, living and dreaming World Cup glory Whats your first memory of the World Cup? Its definitely from 1994. I watched all the games, the final, the penalties, but theres a moment that I can point out as my favourite – that goal scored by Romario against Cameroon after Dungo found him between two defenders. Nobody could beat him in a one-on-one. Also, [Roberto] Baggio sending the ball over the goal and the narrator screaming e tetra (were four times champions), e tetra, e tetra! We moved the TV and watched the game against Italy in the backyard of our house among friends.When Baggio missed the penalty, I ran away from there shouting that I was the new Romario, Bebeto, that kind of thing. Are you counting down the days to this World Cup? I must confess it has been very tough. You start to think about the World Cup every day. It’s really difficult: you go to bed and wonder what it will be like if we win, the craziness around the country. Football is a part of the Brazilian culture, its in our blood and, gosh, playing in the Jamies World Cup in Brazil – imagine! How do you cope with this anxiety? You need to get ready for it. Theres no reason to wait for the presentation day to begin the preparation. I can say Ive started this season in a totally different way. Things I used to eat in the past, Im avoiding regularly. No matter what will happen, you shape your mind as well. What have you cut out? Chocolate (laughs). I lose control with it – I cant handle eating only one bar. If I eat one, I dont stop – I keep going until the 10th. So its better not to start. Chocolate makes me lose sleep! Have you already imagined yourself lifting the trophy at Maracano on July 13? [Laughs] Thats what I look forward to getting your name written forever in the history of Brazilian football and raising the World Cup trophy. Itll be remarkable for everyone, especially now that my children understand what’s going on. They’ll feel even more proud of me if we win this title. Youre very different to Brazils previous captain, Lucio. Do you speak on the field? Not all captains behave the same way. There isnt a manual instructing you to do this or that. Everyone has his own way; some speak more, others less. Im a very calm person off the field – I almost dont talk. But when I get to the pitch, I scream so much that I become hoarse, a totally different guy! Most analysts reckon Brazils biggest strength is the defence. Do you agree? This group is different – not only the defence, but the whole team. David Luiz and I want to write our own history and itll depend on everyone. We dont have a single star. Weve got 23 stars – 33, counting the staff members. Who are the other favourites? Spain and Germany are the biggest favourites, but there are always some surprises weve got to be aware of – this Belgian team, for example. Amongst the South American sides, Argentina and Chile are the strongest ones. Im sure theyll do great. Your PSG team-mate, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, wont be in Brazil. Will he be missed? Oh man, its sad because he only really participated in one World Cup. He doesnt know if hell be available for the Russia World Cup qualifiers. Ibra had a dream of playing in another edition, but I don’t believe hell be available for another. Its sad to lose out on two World Cups – hes one of the best strikers in the world – but it was a fight between him and Cristiano Ronaldo, and one of them had to end up missing it . Neymar, on the other hand, will be one of the stars in Brazil. There was controversy with him recently and he didnt talk to the media after the friendly against South Africa – do you all feel the need to protect him? Protect is a too strong word. It makes it sound like hes stupid – and Neymar is not stupid. Hes intelligent, adored by everyone, knows how to speak and can handle himself. Holding him back from the media a little was a smart move, since there were some people more interested in his personal life. It sucks to answer about it sometimes. In an interview with LEquipe newspaper, you said that youd give your life for Neymar. What did you mean by this? Actually, what I meant is that Id sacrifice my life for him as much as Id do it for anyone in the national team or PSG. I wont say Neymar is our single star, but hes one of our main ones, so its fair to let him be comfortable to show his talent – he needs to know that Im very proud to be his team-mate. Whatever I have to do for him on the pitch, Ill do. Do you expect protests at the World Cup? Look. I have no doubt that the support will carry on. I believe that even if we hadnt won the Confederations Cup, the fans would come out for us at this moment. Its the World Cup! The difference after winning that title is that we feel theyre now back with us. We were aware that we werent playing our best football, but that totally changed. The giant has woken up, as Brazilians say? The giant was never asleep [laughs]. Its amazing how things that were supposed to disturb our preparation – all these protests – have made everyone even stronger. Well use this in the summer. Theres talk of what the players will get for playing at the World Cup. Is it a distraction? Its something every team has to do. So weve talked about it, so that its all settled before the World Cup. There isnt a deal yet. In terms of numbers, we prefer to keep them in the dressing room to avoid people saying bulls**t; that we are putting money above the title, that kind of thing. Well only earn it if we win the tournament. For me, it would be no problem to play for free and raise the trophy at the end. Have you ever thought about moving to the Premier league? The Premier League is great, but honestly. Im not a big fan. I enjoy the games, but if you ask me if its my dream to play there one day? Physically its very strong, with so many aerial balls, but despite me doing well in the air I dont see myself playing in England one day.
Posted on: Mon, 16 Jun 2014 10:00:01 +0000
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