THE BALL – «May Portugal go as far as possible. And that is to be world champion» (United Arab Emirates)
At Shabab Al Ahli, from the United Arab Emirates, since the beginning of the season, Leonardo Jardim, who leads the championship with 22 points (seven wins, one draw and two defeats), presented ‘Azeite do Tua’, the first son of a project that in the future will include wine production and wine tourism. On the sidelines of the event that took place in a commercial area in Lisbon, the 48-year-old coach naturally addressed the 2022 World Cup that starts on Sunday in Qatar.
«A team like Portugal, with the talent it possesses, always has to aspire to the top places. It has players in the best leagues, it is a balanced team, with quality in all sectors and that can aspire to go as far as possible. And to get as far as possible after winning the Euro-2016 is to become world champion!», sustained the Madeiran.
With the National Team inserted in Group H, with Ghana, Uruguay and South Korea (Paulo Bento’s), Leonardo Jardim sees two favorites going to the round of 16: «They are aggressive prescriptions that will fight from beginning to end. We have to be careful. Us and Uruguay are the favorites to make it through the group stage. «Then, we will be among the candidates, like other teams.»
Knowing the reality of the Middle East, not least because in the last season (2021/22) he coached Al Hilal, from Saudi Arabia, Jardim projects «a big» World Cup: «In Qatar it is 20 degrees at night, the ideal temperature for watch good football games. Furthermore, the stadiums are excellent, as are the pitches. The conditions for a great show are in place.”