Roberto Martinez praises grassroots football in Portugal: “I’ve never seen anything like this before” – National Teams

The national team coach in an interview with “Marca”

National coach Roberto Martinez, in an interview with Marca, praised popular football in Portugal, even stating that he had “never seen anything like this before in Europe.”

“The first thing [a destacar em Portugal] It’s popular football. It surprised me a lot, because it is a country of 10 million people, with 80-90 players in the five major European leagues. There are four big teams that have a very high ‘tempo’ in grassroots football. And then the structures. I’ve never seen anything like this in Europe. Having a national league for the under-19s and another for the under-23s, then subsidiary teams and even the main team, makes it possible to have a pool of eight players available in each position between the ages of 17 and 22. Very capable and ready to go abroad and continue to develop,” he began by saying, before praising the Portuguese players’ quick adaptation to other leagues.

“It’s a cultural reflection. In a country like Portugal, it’s normal. The Portuguese speak other languages, they’re open-minded. He comes out with a lot of confidence. And that transfers to the players and into the dressing room,” he said. I finish.

It should be noted that in this same interview, Roberto Martinez also talked about Cristiano Ronaldo’s work ethic And about Joao Felix’s maturity and technical attributesHe showed himself submissive to the players.

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