Eagles have been a symbol of toughness since Babylonian times. One \u00e1guia has been in the modern era, though in inside gymnasiums rather than in the wild.<\/p>\n
Ana Catarina Pereira\u2019s courage belongs to that of a comic-book gladiatrix. The Benfica goalkeeper is esteemed for fearlessly flinging herself at the mercy of swinging shoes, getting thwacked into her face by feet and futsals, and playing through the pain of a fractured finger. Her body has been a bruise factory since day dot. \u201cAs soon as I step on to the court, I\u2019m in the zone,\u201d said the Vila Franca de Xira native. \u201cAdrenaline takes over.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ana Catarina was firmly in the zone as Benfica lined up for a Taca de Portugal quarter-final \u2013 a cl\u00e1ssico against Sporting, no less \u2013 in late January. Her game face was on, her shoulders bobbed from side to side like a brawler ready for battle. Then, suddenly, the tough girl of Portuguese futsal transformed into an emotional wreck.<\/p>\n
Eagles are esteemed for catching others by surprise, and Benfica lived up to their nickname. A stupefied Ana Catarina saw her sister Ana Sofia and grandmother Maria walking on to the court to present her with an award for being named the Best Women\u2019s Goalkeeper for the fourth time. The Portugal No1 broke down at what she described as \u201cone of the best and most emotional moments of my life\u201d.<\/p>\n
Ana Catarina was able to gather herself together and help Benfica to a 4-1 win. Now she has more serious business to take care of. The first FIFA Futsal Women\u2019s World Cup\u2122 will take place in the Philippines later this year. The elite round of UEFA qualifying begins on Wednesday. Two from Portugal, Italy, Hungary and Sweden will make it to the biggest show in the sport\u2019s history.<\/p>\n
You made your Portugal debut against Thailand in 2010. What do you remember about that occasion?
\nAna Catarina: I had just turned 18. I was really nervous, totally nervous. I didn\u2019t really know what was going to happen. I didn\u2019t even know that the coach was going to pick me, but it was very rewarding and I remember everything I felt to this day. I remember it perfectly: being in the bathroom, even throwing up and everything. It was just my nerves. When I found out I was going to play, I hid [throwing up] from everyone so as not to give anyone the wrong impression. But it was tremendously emotional and it\u2019s one of the best memories I have.<\/p>\n
How did it feel to be crowned the world\u2019s Best Women\u2019s Goalkeeper for the first time in 2018?
\nIt was like reaching the summit of the mountain. It was a dream I had. From a certain point on, it became a real goal. I\u2019m very competitive and I always want to win, I always want to be the best. It\u2019s not something I’m obsessed with. I don’t go to training thinking I’m going to be the best or I’m going to work to be the best. But I was very happy. Obviously I wanted to share the news with my family straight away and enjoy the moment. But it also brings a certain responsibility in that, \u2018I managed to become the best in the world, so now I have to prove that people weren\u2019t wrong. I have to give even more of myself to help Benfica and the national team get results and win titles.\u2019<\/p>\n
Can you describe your emotions when FIFA announced the first FIFA Futsal Women\u2019s World Cup?
\nIt was the realisation of a huge dream. I\u2019ve said this many times: even if I\u2019m not among those to go to the tournament, to enjoy the moment, I\u2019ll be extremely happy for the other people, the younger girls who have the opportunity. It was an achievement for all of us futsal players and a source of tremendous pride. It was immense happiness to finally have our World Cup, which is what all the futsal teams and players desired.<\/p>\n
There are so many outstanding goalkeepers in the world today such as Bianca, Jozi, Ana Carolina Sestari and others. How did it feel to be named the Best Women\u2019s Goalkeeper for the fourth time in January?
\nIt was also very pleasing because there were, like you mentioned, great names [nominated], ones of enormous quality who also work immensely hard to be at the top. I see them as role models for me, not rivals. They are people I can take things from to develop my goalkeeping skills. Obviously being among the ten nominees and winning, I was extremely happy.<\/p>\n
How did you feel when you saw your sister and grandmother carrying that tribute on to the court for you before Benfica played?
\nIt was very hard to take in the surprise they gave me. I was really emotional. I received so many messages. I went to bed watching the video, woke up watching the video. I must have watched it 100 times the day after! I\u2019m really grateful to Benfica for giving me that moment because it was better than any award, any trophy. The trophies can stay on shelves, in museums, but these types of memories, these type of emotions stay with us through life. I\u2019m sure that what I felt in my house \u2013 Benfica is my home \u2013 with my family, who are also Benfica fans, is a feeling that I will be able to relive in my memory until I die. I will never, ever forget that moment.<\/p>\n
Italy, Hungary and Sweden… What did you think of Portugal\u2019s draw for the elite round of European qualifying?
\nI think it was a difficult draw for us, because I think both Sweden and Hungary will also have something to say. They won\u2019t be easy games, especially because Sweden and Hungary are also very physical teams. Italy are always difficult to play against, but playing at home they will be even more difficult. Given they have missed the last three European Championships, I think Italy will be extremely difficult to beat. But our objective is to finish first in the group, especially because that could help us to be seeded in the World Cup groups.<\/p>\n
What do you think of Renatinha as a player?
\nShe\u2019s a very difficult player to defend against. She has incredible ability, a phenomenal left foot, her shots are extremely difficult to stop. One on one she\u2019s very strong. When she links up well with the pivot, it\u2019s a weapon for her and her teams. She\u2019s an opponent I love to face, because I always like playing against the best.<\/p>\n
Portugal also had someone nominated for the Best Women\u2019s Player 2024 award. What do you think of Janice?
\nJanice is my baby. She grew up with me here at Benfica. Seeing her evolution, the mentality she\u2019s developed, the physical shape she\u2019s in, how she handles contact from the best fixos in the world \u2013 Spaniards, Brazilians, Italians \u2013 has been amazing. She\u2019s shown that she\u2019s without doubt one of the best, if not the best, pivot in the world.<\/p>\n
You have Brazil, Italy, Spain. Are you confident Portugal can win Philippines 2025?
\nI believe that Portugal can win the first World Cup. We have a long way to go, but obviously we have to believe that we can win it. We know that it will be extremely difficult, because of the teams that you mentioned. I believe that Argentina can also surprise us. That is why I believe that it will be extremely difficult. I think it will be a brilliant first World Cup and will surpass all expectations that people may have. But I always believe that we can win, even taking into account the difficulties. Right now my biggest dream is to become a World Cup champion. Ever since the World Cup was made official, I\u2019ve dreamed a lot about winning it and lifting the trophy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Eagles have been a symbol of toughness since Babylonian times. One \u00e1guia has been in the modern era, though in inside gymnasiums rather than in the wild. Ana Catarina Pereira\u2019s courage belongs to that of a comic-book gladiatrix. The Benfica goalkeeper is esteemed for fearlessly flinging herself at the mercy of swinging shoes, getting thwacked […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":1059414,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20966],"tags":[9648,27192],"class_list":["post-1059413","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fifa-news","tag-fifa","tag-fifa-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1059413","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1059413"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1059413\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1059417,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1059413\/revisions\/1059417"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1059414"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1059413"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1059413"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1059413"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}