After elimination on penalties for Canada, in the quarterfinals of Tokyo Olympics, Marta left her future in the Brazilian national team open. At 35, she prefers to wait for the “dust to settle” before making a decision.
“I don’t know. It’s difficult to give this answer now, my head is racing. I’m very emotional, I’ll leave this answer for later. I can’t say at the moment… Anyway, sorry, I’m very emotional”, she told TV Globo the ace, asking not to blame the younger ones:
“I ask people not to point the finger at anyone, to point the finger at anyone, to point at me that I’m used to it. The new generation cannot be blamed for this elimination.”
Marta made a point of dedicating a good part of the interview to her partner Formiga, who at 43 years old and after having participated in all the Olympics, is ending her cycle in the Brazilian national team:
“Obviously I got a taste of wanting more. I even told the girls, especially Formiga, who wanted to live once again the emotion of fighting for a medal for her (Formiga), but I really appreciate what she did for the national team. all the time. A life dedicated to the sport, inspiration for all the girls and that could have a happier ending, but she is a warrior and that makes us very proud.”
About the match itself, which ended tied 0-0 in normal time and 4-3 for Canada in the penalty shootout, Marta believes that the victory did not come from details, but was proud of what the group presented.
“Sometimes things don’t work. I felt that we started very well, we were able to open the scoring, we lacked a little more patience in the final third. There were situations that we could have used better because they were clearly more tired. football and not always the best to win. Now is thinking about the future. To continue supporting the sport because women’s football does not end here, it continues, I hope that people are more aware and do not point fingers at anyone, there is no blame. The ball was missing. I’m very proud of the team and of everything we’ve lived through,” he said.
Finally, Marta again left open the future in the Brazilian team, but stressed that the work in the modality will continue regardless of its continuity:
“I still think that you have to cry at the beginning to smile at the end (a phrase she said in 2019 and that went viral). When she goes out on the field, it’s for fun, it’s what we love. I believe that message had a great influence. On the positive side, the girls who really understood and captured it, gave their best. You can be sure that the work on the selection will continue with Marta, without Marta, with Formiga or without Formiga”.
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